


Magic Hurts

by doctovstrange



Category: Captain America (Movies), Doctor Strange (2016), Infinity War (2018), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Arrogance, Blow Jobs, Break Up, Deep Throating, Domestic Fluff, Falling In Love, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff, Friendship, Heartbreak, Love, M/M, Memories, No Powers Yet, Post-Break Up, Romance, Rutting, Set Before Iron Man (2008), Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, alternative universe, slightly OC
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-05-30 11:18:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 21,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15095618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctovstrange/pseuds/doctovstrange
Summary: Stephen has worked out that there is only one scenario where Thanos is defeated, and that involves his own death, along with the death of half the universe. Sitting on a rock, he contemplates his relationship with Tony Stark and all that could have come from it if the two of them hadn't been so wrapped up in themselves.Updates every Friday.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my first MCU fic, so it's not as good as I'd hoped it would be, and it also hasn't been checked by anyone but me. If you find any mistakes, please let me know below.
> 
> I don't own any of the characters so all rights go to Disney and Marvel.
> 
> I really hope that you enjoy my fic! Please leave a comment down below letting me know what you thought about it or if you have any suggestions so I can improve my writing.

Sitting on Titan, Stephen Strange realised that there was only one way, out of over 14 million options, for the Avengers to defeat Thanos, and that involved his own life being taken away from him.

Blocking out the commotion his fellow companions were making, trying to think of anything to defeat the Mad Titan, he reflected on his life, and what he’d become.

Could he have been a better person? Potentially (events directly before and after his ‘accident’ came to mind).

Could he have enjoyed life that little bit more? Definitely.

Did he have regrets? More than a few.

Watching Tony Stark, trusting and loyal Tony Stark, talk his young protégé (who Stephen also knew would die on this day) through Quill’s plan as though it was the worst thing he had ever had the displeasure of hearing, Stephen realised that he had made more than one mistake concerning the people he loved.

It’s not as though he had loved many people in his life, but looking back it was most likely because he was the one who was difficult to love. Many a person, including his mother, had told him that he would be unlovable.

In the absence of love, he had gained himself quite the reputation in the media for being a bit of a playboy, though even his reputation could not compare to the reputation of one Tony Stark.

He thought about his first time, at the age of 17, losing his virginity to a guy named Marcus in a van behind campus, off his face on pot and wondering why exactly people chose to do this so often. Sex was boring, and uncomfortable - at least he’d gotten free weed out of the deal.

By the time he had turned 21, he’d slept with fifteen different people and had decided that he was pansexual. He didn’t understand why people would limit themselves solely to one gender when there were so many different people out there to explore. He’d also started to enjoy sex a little more, but no one had truly impressed him.

He had briefly dated Christine Palmer, but she had told him on several occasions that she deserved better than how he treated her. Stephen knew she was right.

Overall, the sex was plain and more of a chore than anything else; that wasn’t her fault though. Stephen’s heart just wasn’t in it. Sitting at the end of half of the universe, he wished that he’d treated Christine better.

Before he had gone awol, Stephen and Karl Mordo had stolen a few quiet moments together in the dead of night, both lonely and not wanting to admit that there was more to their relationship than just the sex. Stephen did not know where Karl was currently, but he knew that they would never meet again.

And then there was Tony Stark.

They’d met when Stephen was 30 and almost at the top of his game.

Considered a self-absorbed, know-it-all to many, Tony and Stephen were two fish swimming in the same pond. The media lapped up any little trivial piece of information that was exposed about the two men, including that Stark was hosting a party to celebrate New Year’s with a few… choice friends.

Standing in amongst hundreds of other people, Stephen watched as Tony Stark glided through the crowd, kissing women’s cheeks and holding close male friend in hugs that seemed to last an eternity.

As he ordered his gin and tonic, he listened to several other guests standing around him as the sound of gossip started to increase in volume.

“I’ve heard that Tony had ten models go back to his apartment with him the other day,”

“Ten?”

“I’m not sure whether I’m surprised or just jealous that I wasn’t invited,”

The two women next to him giggled, a shrill kind of sound that hurt his ears, and made him want to leave the party immediately.

He’d never met Tony Stark personally, even though they had been to several of the same parties, but he was aware of his reputation: lots of money, lots of women, and not much bother for anyone else but himself. So he had considered himself more than ready to meet the man that could challenge him intellectually if he really wanted him to.

Of course, life had a strange way of proving you spectacularly wrong.

Turning and leaning his back against the bar, allowing him to have a wider expanse of the room to admire from a far, Stephen sipped his gin and tonic, eyebrows furrowing as he noticed a pair of eyes watching him from the other side of the room.

A pair of eyes on a stage.

“Good evening everyone, as many of you may well know, I am Tony Stark,” a chorus of laughter and cheering erupted around the room, including from the two women next to Stephen who were planning on a way to get themselves into Tony’s bed that night.

“I would just like to thank you all for being here tonight to celebrate the New Year with me. I’m sure that 2003 is going to be a much better year for me, I don’t know about you lot,” another chorus of laughter made its way around, although Stephen couldn’t particularly understand why people were finding the speech quite so entertaining when all Stephen could do was watch the way that Tony’s lips moved next to the microphone.

“I’m going to keep this short and sweet, much like myself, by saying that if you have any problems at all, please tell my personal assistant, Miss Pepper Potts, who was responsible for this whole party,” he smiled briefly at a red-headed woman to his right, who was slowly shaking her head at him, “anyway, that’s it from me, enjoy the free booze, and let’s party!”

A cheer, louder than any of the ones beforehand, sounded out around the room, before the music started to blare from speakers perched next to a live band once again.

Stephen watched as Tony hugged a man, who he knew from the news to be one Colonel James Rhodes, kissed his personal assistant on the cheek and then hopped down from the stage into the sea of people that stood between them.

After a few seconds, he lost sight of the man wearing a tight black suit and red glasses, and turned back to the bar, ordering another gin and tonic to pass the time. After all, if he was going to have to suffer at this party for a few hours, he might as well drink his time away.

Just as his next drink arrived, a hand was placed on his left shoulder, making Stephen jump and shiver slightly at the same time.

“Tony Stark,” the smaller of the two men said, his eyes hidden by sunglasses, but his trademark smile on show for all, "but, of course you already knew that, didn't you,"

“Doctor Stephen Strange,”

A handshake was shared. Who could have known that such a simple act of respect would suddenly heighten a hidden desire in Stephen’s stomach, and make it rise all the way to his head, a shiver running down his spine.

He _needed_ him.

For the first time in his life, Stephen truly desired someone. Someone so far out of his reach, and yet so close at this precise moment. What’s wrong with a bit of a challenge anyway?

Tony looked the neurosurgeon up and down briefly, his eyes hovering on their joined hands, “it’s nice to finally meet the man that Rhodey keeps telling me about. You’ve got yourself an avid fan, Strange,”

Both men pulled apart reluctantly, Stephen moving his hand to hold his drink just that little bit tighter. He could smell the man’s cologne at this distance; a slightly spicy but bold aroma that Stephen thought suited him well.

Chuckling slightly, Stephen replied, “just as you have in me,” he took a slow sip of his gin and tonic, making sure to maintain eye contact with the billionaire.

“Oh really? I wouldn’t have taken you for a man who follows politics,”

“It’s not the politics that interest me, Stark. It’s the technology. Technology like yours could do wonders for my field,”

Tony stopped for a moment, barely even a second in real time, considering the man in front of him.

The way Strange held himself wasn’t that different from the way Tony held himself; he wanted the World to know that he would not be messed with. He had earnt the Stark title, whether his father would have agreed with him or not, and he wasn’t afraid to spend the money that he was making.

What Strange was trying to prove when he was already the highest paid neurosurgeon in the World, Tony didn’t know, but there was clearly more to this man that just an arrogant smile and slightly too high cheekbones.

“Please,” Tony laughed slightly, swaying on his feet as he looked the other man up and down once again, “you’ll make my head grow two more sizes. Some would say that it’s already big enough,”

Stephen laughed empathetically, “when you’re as rich and influential as you are, I think you can afford to have a big head, Stark,” he flashed the older man a smile, “I would know,” 

Tony laughed, almost a full bell laugh that made his whole body shake with the force of it, “ah yes, Doctor Stephen Strange. Self-proclaimed narcissist, with an ego that almost rivals my own," he looked the other man up and down appreciatively, "don't let Pepper hear you talk of such things. She'll be on at me all night about-"

“Don’t let Pepper hear you talk about what, exactly?"

Seeing pepper up close like this, Stephen decided that the news did not do her enough credit. Her hair shimmered in the lights and her face glowed as though she had been drinking, when of course she could not have been doing so. She was dressed in a green dress that brought out the colour of her eyes, and was wearing heels that made her taller than her boss (not that that was a particularly difficult task). He briefly wondered whether it was her beauty that ensured Tony always had her around. Stephen knew that if he had an assistant that looked like her, she'd never be far from him either. 

“Pepper, you know I love you,” Tony said, plastering a smile on his face and wrapping his arm around his PA’s shoulders, “but we’ve talked about you sneaking up on me whilst I’m mingling with my guests,”

Stephen held his hand out to Pepper, who shook it softly, “Doctor Stephen Strange,"

“Pepper Potts. It’s nice to finally meet the man that has been stealing Tony’s limelight," she looked at her boss, his eyes a slightly darker colour than usual, the danger in them shimmering at the surface, "that's what he tells me anyway,"

“Pepper is the person responsible for all of this,” he moved his glass around the room, pointing to certain areas he thought were particularly impressive, "better her than me any day,"

“I’m sorry to interrupt, sir. I need a word with you before everything starts to get out of hand and I can’t talk to you properly,” Pepper informed him.

Tony glanced at Stephen, the neurosurgeon smiling at him slightly, “I can wait,” he said, taking another sip from his gin and tonic, "but not too long,"

“I won’t be a minute,” Tony smiled, walking away with Pepper.

Stephen stood alone, his head spinning slightly due to the mixture of alcohol and following the movements of Tony’s hands.

He really did have _very beautiful_ hands, he thought to himself. Where Stephen’s hands were long and lithe, much like his frame, Tony’s were smaller and covered in callouses from hard days down in his workshop fiddling away with whatever project he set his mind to.

Tony was very expressive with his hands, he noticed.

When Pepper said something that Tony clearly didn’t like, Stephen saw how his fingers tightened around his glass, almost tight enough to break the glass completely.

When Tony was getting his way, he saw how he moved his hands into his hair, pushing it back from his eyes and behind his ears.

Stephen decided from that moment on that he loved Tony’s hands. He didn’t just want them to touch him, caress him, and play him as though playing an instrument, he wanted to _kiss_ them, and _worship_ them as though they were a priceless treasure that no one should ever touch again, but him.

When Stephen thought about it now, he wondered how no one else had seen the desire written in every movement he made, in every sip of his drink he took, and in the way he stood alone, isolated, but staring at Tony as though he were a god among men.

He was so lost in his own thoughts that he missed the call of his name over the sound of the party.

“Strange?”

Stephen was startled out of his thoughts by a smirking Tony, his eyebrows raised.

“You’re strange by name and strange by nature, it seems,” he said, laughing to himself as though he’d made the best joke he’d ever heard.

“If I had a dollar for every time I have had to listen to that joke, I’d be a millionaire,” Stephen smirked slightly, raising his glass to his lips, "oh wait, I do,"

The chuckle that left Tony’s mouth was practically music to Stephen’s ears, the whole scenario making Stephen feel like a teenager with his first crush all over again.

“A little birdy told me that you're more of a earn and spend kind of guy. Ever thought about putting some money aside for the day my technology takes away your job?" Tony prodded, interested to see how the man would react. 

“That’s true. I have an eye for a pretty car," he took a sip of his drink, "the way I see it, I'm currently the best neurosurgeon in the World. Why should I not have a little fun with my money?" he eyed the other man, "Clearly, someone has been following me more closely than they would like to admit. Got a crush to admit, Stark?" he smiled at the billionaire, admiring his eyes from the short distance between them.

Tony bounced on the balls of his feet for a moment, rubbing his goatee and avoiding the question completely, "would you care to join me on the balcony? The noise of giggling women attempting to get into my bed, and men cursing my name like that of Satan, is beginning to make my ears hurt a little to much for my liking," he paused for a moment, before adding, "The fireworks will be going off in a few minutes, and I have the best view in the house,"

Taking a sip of his drink, Stephen thought briefly, “lead the way,”

The two men, blending seamlessly into the crowd of people dancing and drinking and celebrating Tony Stark’s existence, made their way out through a set of glass doors, onto a balcony. There was a slight chill in the air that was expected of a late night at the end of December.

From the balcony, Stephen could see most of New York, and it was, for lack of a better word, beautiful. Almost as beautiful as the man standing beside him.

“You’re not exactly what I expected, Strange,”

Stephen turned his head to stare at the smaller man, his heart beating slightly faster for a moment.

“That’s rich coming from you, Stark. I expected to see you with ten different women hanging off your arms,” he swallowed the lump in his throat, not wanting to offend Tony, “that’s if I actually saw you at all, of course,”

When he was met with a cold stare, he said, “I heard some frankly women talking about you at the bar,”

Tony coughed, clearing his throat, before he spoke softly, “That was never the reputation that I wanted for myself,” he turned to look out over the balcony, and away from Stephen’s eyes, “I just wanted to have fun, finally out of my father’s shadow, and in true fashion, the media twisted it,”

Downing the finger of whiskey left in his glass, he turned to face the younger man, “it’s hard to get rid of a name once it’s been tattooed into your reputation deeper than your father’s influence. In the end, it was easier to pretend that I was just exactly as the media said,”

Tony coughed once again, straightening himself up and quickly replacing all emotion with a cool mask that Stephen was used to putting on himself.

“I don’t know why I’m telling you this, Strange,” he chuckled to himself, “you’re supposed to be one of the most arrogant people around, excluding me of course,”

"Oh I am arrogant, because I'm the best at what I do," Stephen replied coolly, "sometimes I find it easier to just pick and choose my battles, Stark,"

Tony chose not to respond to that. After all the years he’d spent living in both his father’s and Captain America’s shadows, it was time someone believed in him, and if that had to be himself, then so be it. 

“I didn’t bring you out here to debate about who has the bigger head out of the two of us," he stared pointedly at the other man's crotch, "though no doubt I beat you in both departments," he straightened himself up as much as he could, trying to gain some form of control over the situation. 

"I wanted to know whether you would agree to going on a date with me,"

The sound of the crowd inside counting down to the new year suddenly became louder.

“Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!”

Stephen looked affronted for a moment, considering the idea, “and why did you think I would say yes?”

“Because I’m Tony Stark, obviously,”

“Six! Five! Four! Three!”

A laugh rose out of Stephen’s chest unwillingly, causing his entire face to light up.

“Two! One!”

“Perhaps you are the Tony Stark I imagined,”

“HAPPY NEW YEAR,”

Tony turned to look at the other man, his heartbeat sounding loudly in his ears. Just as he was about so make some witty response, the fireworks started above them, the bright colours making Stephen’s eyes and cheekbones shine in the dark January morning.

With the fireworks still flashing above them, Stephen held out his hand, Tony looking at it with a puzzled expression.

“Planning on solidifying our date with a secret handshake, Strange?”

Stephen’s eyebrows rose, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“Well, if you don’t want my number,”

Realisation covered Tony’s face, a small blush showing itself on his ears.

Tony couldn’t understand what was wrong with him, he _never_ blushed. There was just something about Stephen Strange that made him feel like a young blushing virgin (which, let’s be honest, he was anything but).

Tony handed the neurosurgeon his phone, and watched the other man’s fingers as he entered his phone number.

“I’ll text you, and we can organise something,” Tony fumbled on his words, trying to not to let the desperation he felt for the man in front of him to show.

"Don't keep me waiting too long, I'm not known for my patience," Stephen smiled, "I'll see you around, Stark"

“Please,” Tony said, holding his hand out once again for Stephen to shake, “call me Tony,”

Stephen winked at Tony, refusing to turn back and look at the other man, even as he heard him mumble, “all it took was a goddamn wink”

From fifteen years in the future, Stephen smiled to himself, the memory warming his heart in a time where happiness seemed truly impossible at this point.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephen arrives for his date with Tony at Stark Tower

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote this chapter ten times, so I hope it's okay :')
> 
> Please enjoy!

The date didn't happen for another month, both men absorbed in their work.

Stephen told Tony that he was busy every time the billionaire tried to schedule the date, which was true... some of the time.

Although he hated to admit it (Tony laughed when he told him a few weeks after their first date), Stephen was trying to put Tony off for as long as possible. He knew exactly how the World saw the pair of them as individuals, so the damage having the two of them together could do would be astronomical. He shuddered to think of the headlines the media would go with.

Neither of them would recover from that, especially if they were not ready for the World to know when it got out. And if anything happened to his career, then there would be hell to pay.

If Tony couldn’t take waiting for a month, then nothing would happen between them. Simple.

When he thought about it, Stephen didn’t know why he was so _desperate_ for Tony to like him. He’d never been this way about anyone before, so why now? It's not like people weren't interested in him. He knew that he was attractive, hence people were almost constantly begging to be allowed into his bed every night. It was the getting to know him part that put people off before they even got there, but that was nothing that a couple of drinks for the two of them couldn't solve.

The only thing he could put it down to was a certain level of mutual understanding that the two of them shared.

Tony knew what it felt like to be well-known. But more importantly, he understood just how isolated being famous made a person, particularly if they were considered arrogant, just as the two of them were.

The crippling level of isolation that fame ‘gifted’ people with was slowly starting to starve Stephen. The less he was around people that he actually had an interest in talking to or getting to know, the less he wanted to be around people that weren't worth his time, which was most of the population at any current time. He couldn't help it, people just couldn't keep his mind occupied long enough with their ridiculous use of the weather as small talk. It was slowly becoming a vicious circle, one of self-hatred and loathing for people who found it easier than him. 

Christine never had any kind of problem with people, hence Stephen left her to deal with all the family problems after a surgery whilst he went to top his caffeine levels up to the right point. 

He was slowly learning that people only really wanted him around for his skilful hands, whether that be on an operating table or in the bedroom, and not for his bedside manner, if there was such a thing.

Well, Stephen hoped that Tony understood these things. He couldn’t get a proper read on the man.

Tony Stark. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.

 _Enigma_.

Stephen knew just how far the media could twist a person to get a good story, so what was true about Tony that he’d seen in the news?

Probably nothing, but you could never be too sure. The media had a wicked way of using something truthful just to make sure a story was concrete.

Whenever he blew Tony off, Stephen would sit in the darkest corner of his studio apartment and drink through an entire bottle of whiskey.

He had _issues_.

* * *

From his mansion in Malibu, Tony spent many hours thinking about the neurosurgeon. He was the master of his craft, much like Tony, which is potentially what drew him to the other man. When Pepper asked him why he’d decided to give _this_ man a chance, despite never dating anyone _ever_ , he told her that it was the other man’s mind and desire to be at the top of his game that drew him in.

In reality, it was the neurosurgeon’s hands.

He just couldn’t _stop_ thinking about Stephen’s hands. Those hands saved lives.

Of course, Tony was no stranger to using  _his_ hands either, but the neurosurgeons were something on a whole other level of talented. 

When Stephen had accepted Tony’s offer of a date, he hadn’t expected it at all. He’d half expected the younger man to laugh at him and then tell the World that Tony liked taking it up the arse. Someone had tried to do that to him before, back when he was in his 20’s, so it was a legitimate concern of his at this point. You never knew who people could turn out to be once you got past the ‘I’m a normal person’ mask.

Okay, maybe he was taking this way out of proportion.

Personally, he didn’t think that Stephen would have a lot to hide from him. He prided himself at being good at reading people.

And yet, Stephen turned out to be a man of many surprises, as he would learn in later months, which constantly kept Tony on his toes.

What had he gotten himself into?

From the isolation of his workshop, the silence of his own company, and occasional whines from DUM-E and U when he refused to properly take care of himself of play fetch with them, beginning to suffocate him, Tony had spent many nights drinking himself to sleep at the thought of Stephen rejecting him.

He was Tony Stark, _he_ was the one who was supposed to be rejecting people, _not_ the other way around. People did not just agree to go on dates with Tony Stark. That shit _never_ happened, which was what scared Tony the most. How could someone, who had obviously seen the name that Tony had made himself in the news, be so willing to go on a date with him? It didn’t make any sense!

Stephen Strange didn’t make any sense.

* * *

On February 5th, Stephen decided that he had finally had enough of playing around. If he wanted to go on a date with Tony Stark, then he would go on a date with Tony Stark, consequences be damned. 

So, he had decided it was time to face who they really were.

Two guys, with two fucked up childhoods, who had some serious daddy issues if they were really brutally honest with themselves, okay.

After a long day of surgery, involving a bullet in a man's spine, Tony had sent him a text:

**Hey, stranger (get it?), so I’m back in New York for the weekend, wanting to let my hair down, and I thought you might like to check out the penthouse at Stark Tower. Let me know. -TS x**

Stephen laughed to himself.

It was no surprise to him that Tony would continue making puns about his name after the whole ‘strange by nature’ joke at the party.

Overall, the message was quite… sweet?

He tapped his fingers against his kitchen island, wondering how he should play the game to get the best results.

**Hi, Stark. Would you believe it if I told you that’s always been a secret wish of mine? I’m free Friday to Monday (unless someone more interesting tempts me, you know how brains are). Let me know when’s best for you – Stephen**

Waiting for a reply from Tony, Stephen made some green tea, hoping it would help calm his heart that appeared to be trying to escape his chest. He had actually just agreed to go on a date with Tony Stark (for the second time no less) and had _flirted_ with him in the process.

_Oh god._

**Sure it was, babe. I could never imagine competing with those patients of yours. It’s a war I could never win. How about you drop by about 1 on Friday? -TS x**

Stephen smiled to himself.

Bold move.

Game on, Stark. Game on.

* * *

Standing outside Stark Tower, Stephen clenched his fists for a moment. He’d never been this nervous to meet anyone in his life. When did he suddenly become a teenage girl? Who knew. He wondered whether it was because Tony was almost like an equal to Stephen, or as close to an equal as they were really going to get. He'd never met anyone who could properly challenge him intellectually, whilst also maintaining their true feelings about a situation, such as their own self-importance concerning the matter, and still get away with a full set of teeth. It had interested him.

_Anyway, c_ _an’t back out now_

Walking through the large glass doors, he removed his coat and folded it over his arm, admiring the time Tony had clearly put into designing the tower. Everything was done to perfection. He didn't know how anyone could have expected any less from Tony.

Once at the front desk, an oak and aluminium combination that Stephen didn’t necessarily agree with, he said, “Doctor Stephen Strange, Tony Stark should be expecting me,"

The young blonde woman gave him the once over, plastering a smile on her face that Stephen thought made her look a bit like a shark. He could see that there was a smudge of her deep red lipstick on her teeth. He decided against telling her of its existence.

“Of course, sir. I’ll let Mister Stark know that you’re here,”

The smile quickly left her face, and Stephen’s eyebrows rose.

“And people say that I have bad customer service skills," he mumbled to himself, turning away from the desk to admire the décor of the ground floor.

Nobody could say that Tony Stark didn’t have taste.

He picked a piece of hair from his suit. He'd chosen a blue suit, with brown pin stripe checks running across it, one that hugged every part of his body that he wanted it to. Particularly his arse. People were constantly telling him how splendid it was, even if they were telling him to remove his head from it, so why not show off what he has? He bought the suit last year but he had never found an occasion to wear it where he truly wanted to get someone interested in him. 

Before he’d left, he’d had to put make up on his face, covering the dark circles under his eyes that had developed over the previous couple of weeks due to countless sleepless nights.

He just hoped that Tony focused on his arse in this suit more than he did his face.

“Mister Stark will see you now,” a shrill voice said over his shoulder. Looking back at the receptionist, he could see that the smile had returned, once again showing the red on her teeth, “when you are in the elevator, you’ll want to go to the penthouse,”

Stephen smirked slightly, pretending that he didn't already know that was exactly where he would be going, “thank you,” he could tell that his presence in the Stark Tower was already riling her up, perhaps she’d never been invited up to Stark’s penthouse.

Walking quickly through a crowd of people who looked at him enviously, clearly jealous that he was allowed to use the elevator, he smiled to himself. Perhaps meeting Tony had been a good idea after all.

The elevator, lined with silver leaf patterned wallpaper, was spacious and bright, further demonstrating just how much pride Tony Stark took in his professional image. Once Stephen noticed that there were no buttons to press in the elevator, he smiled slightly, his eyes raising to look at the glass ceiling.

“Penthouse, please,”

“Of course, Doctor Strange,” an English voice said, sounding like he was talking right into Stephen’s ears.

Shaking his head slightly, Stephen smiled, almost looking like the Cheshire cat, and giggling internally like a schoolboy. He’d always wondered whether the rumours about Tony’s AI were true or not. Apparently, he’d underestimated the skills of Tony Stark.

As the lift rose, a slight panic started to fill Stephen’s chest.

What if the billionaire saw him, decided that he’d made a mistake, and called security to kick him out?

Stephen didn’t really want to think about that (although he wasn’t exactly opposed to being pressed up to two muscly men).

The elevator stopped.

The English voice started again, “welcome, Doctor Strange. My name is Jarvis, I am Mister Stark’s AI,”

Stephen stepped out from the elevator, immediately noticing the view the penthouse allowed him to see. Even if Tony decided that he didn’t want Stephen anymore, maybe he’d allow him to go to the penthouse every now and again to

“Hello, Jarvis, where’s Tony?”

“Mister Stark is currently in the swimming pool, sir,” Stephen looked around the penthouse, stopping slightly at the location of his date, “Forgive me, sir, but I believe that Mister Stark might have lost track of the time,”

 _Of course he had_ Stephen thought to himself.

“If you were to go to the pool now, sir, I believe you might like what you see,” Jarvis replied.

Stephen could hear a level of smugness, and maybe even a smile, in the AI’s voice, which he honestly didn’t think possible. Trust Stark to design an AI that had almost all the same characteristics as he had. He did have a point though. The thought of Tony Stark nearly naked and dripping wet was a thought that Stephen thoroughly enjoyed.

“Where exactly is the pool, Jarvis?”

“Just down the hall to your left, sir,”

The neurosurgeon’s smile grew even larger.

The pool was large, roughly the same size as the size of his own apartment, and shone almost like the sun was hitting it directly. There were several different areas to the pool, each with its own individual style that screamed Tony Stark. From where Stephen stood, he could see that the pool had a hot tub, the water bubbling and steam rising steadily from it. It took all of Stephen’s willpower not to strip off and get into it. Another area was fitted with a fountain, and Stephen briefly wondered exactly how many people Tony had invited to spend time swimming here. The body count was probably too high to comprehend.

His eyes finally found their way to Tony.

The older man was swimming lengths, clearly lost in his own head as he swam from one end of the pool to the other. He wondered what was on Tony’s mind. Obviously something important otherwise Tony would have remembered that they had a date. 

Stephen placed his coat on a similar rack to the one that Tony’s towel was currently hanging from, and then took off his shoes.

The feeling of bewilderment that he felt over Tony not noticing him stood next to the pool increased as he rolled the legs of his suit up. Who cared if he creased the suit if the man he’d specifically worn it for didn’t even notice that he was there?

He was willing to play ball.

Sitting down on the pool’s edge, he dipped his toes into the water, wrapping his arms around his knees and looking slightly like a lost child. He pulled out his phone, hoping to make himself look slightly less pathetic in case Tony decided that he would notice him at some point in the future.

A further ten minutes passed in this way, Tony swimming laps, and Stephen tapping away on his phone and planning his schedule for the next week. Or so he would tell Tony when he asked him about what he was actually doing two months later.

Eventually, Tony rose from the water, throwing his head back like women do in movies, and removing the googles from his face.

The billionaire rubbed at his eyes for a moment, “Jarvis, how many lengths was that?”

“One hundred, sir,” the AI replied, sounding completely normal and as though he did not know there was a man sitting on the edge of the pool.

“Not too bad,” Tony said, starting to turn towards the door to his room, “I should have just enough time to- Strange?”

Alarm found its way into Tony’s voice, he had finally noticed that Stephen was there, lounging on the side of the pool, looking _beautiful_.

_Oh._

How the man could pull off a frankly gorgeous suit whilst also dipping his feet into the water, Tony didn’t know, but he would be taking notes that he could follow in the future.

“How long have you been standing there and watching me in my birthday suit, Strange?”

Stephen looked the other man up and down, not having noticed before that Tony was completely naked. Who swam naked?

“Only about ten minutes,” he smiled, standing and running his hands down his suit to straighten it out as much as he could, “your eyes in the sky told me that you’d probably lost track of time,”

Tony scowled at the ceiling, “I asked Jarvis to let me know when you were in the building,”

“I thought you might prefer a surprise, sir,” the smug voice replied. From the look in Tony’s eyes, Stephen could tell that the older man was regretting his choice of personality (if that was even possible) for his helping hand.

“Do you lose track of time a lot?”

Tony took a deep breath, rising out of the water fully and walking towards Stephen, still completely naked. He wasn’t ashamed of himself, so what was the point in trying to hide what he was proud of?

“Only when I’m thinking about you,” he replied, immediately wanting to smack himself as he studies the look on Strange’s face. A mixture of amusement and arousal crossed the neurosurgeon’s features, perking Tony’s mood up slightly.

“Like what you see, Strange?”

 “I haven’t been on many dates in my time, but usually people eat or talk before they decide to get naked,” he laughed slightly, admiring the blush that rose on Tony’s cheeks and neck.

Stephen folded the legs of his suit back down, attempting to smooth out the creases once again, without success.

Picking up his shoes and his coat, he looked Tony up and down appreciatively once last time before he turned and started to leave the room, “I’ll wait for you on the sofa, Stark. Don’t keep me waiting long,”

And with that, the neurosurgeon disappeared from Tony’s view.

He took a deep breath.

“Jesus Christ,” he mumbled to himself, almost hearing in the silence just how smug Jarvis was being about the whole situation. It was like the butler from his childhood was standing right beside him, proud and smug.

Tony tugged a towel around his waist, his mind straying to how Stephen would look without his suit on. He felt the blood starting to flow to somewhere that it shouldn’t have been in that moment.

Safe to say, he was royally fucked. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a comment below if you have anything that you think I could improve on, it'd be much appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Stephen go on their date

Stephen sat on one of the many, surprisingly comfy, sofas in Tony’s penthouse, looking out onto New York and trying not to think about Tony completely naked in the pool.

He’d known that Tony would be attractive under all the suits he was always seen wearing but _that_ beautiful?

It was taking all his willpower, and a few choices mental images, to keep himself at bay.

As gorgeous as the view from the penthouse was, all Stephen wanted to do was storm into Tony’s bedroom, rip that towel straight off his waist and fuck him so hard they would wake up Monday morning and neither of them would be able to walk. Now _that_ was an image.

Would Tony like that? Or would he prefer to be the one on top?

Stephen didn’t know, but just thinking about it was enough to drive him completely wild. He was _trying_ to stay composed.

With these thoughts running through his head, making him hot and sweaty under his collar, he didn’t notice when Tony came to stand behind him. Tony had never looked or felt smugger in his entire life. The state Stephen was in was all down to him, and he was going to enjoy the moment while it lasted. He could see the blush that had appeared on the back of Stephen’s neck, a gorgeous red colour that Tony thought suited him well, a bead of sweat slowly sliding down from his hairline. He wondered exactly what Stephen had been imagining that had made him so flustered when he hadn’t even been in the room. He tried not to feel offended.

Walking to stand in front of Stephen, a shadow on the other man’s face, he noticed that his eyes were glossed over, the man completely lost in his own head. From this angle, Tony could see that he was breathing deeply, his hands fisted on his suit trousers as he clearly tried to keep himself calm.

He decided that he was going to have some fun.

“Enjoying the view?” he said loudly.

Stephen jumped slightly, startled by the sudden voice. He rose from the sofa to stare at his date, hoping that he hadn’t been lost in his head for too long.

Going by the way Tony was suddenly dressed, and looking like a piece of art in front of him, he would hazard a guess and say that he’d been thinking dirty thoughts about Tony for at least fifteen minutes, whilst trying to convince himself that he wasn’t at all bothered by seeing the other man naked.

(Stephen laughs at himself looking back, because Tony could obviously see the massive hard-on that he was failing to hide)

He wiped his hands, sweating slightly, and smiled.

There was no doubt in his mind that Tony was a _stunning_ man. As if he had needed any more proof than what he was seeing right before him.

The suit that Tony had chosen to wear was so simple that it extenuated all the things Stephen loved about him.

His eyes, Stephen adored the man’s eyes; a dark brown colour, held wisdom that Stephen didn’t think he would ever truly understand for himself. He could see that the eyes held a few well-guarded secrets that Tony probably wasn’t comfortable with sharing right now. Maybe someday though.

Next was his facial hair; well-trimmed and styled to suit Tony’s face perfectly, was part of the trademark Tony Stark look and Stephen _loved_ it. He almost considered growing one of his own. Perhaps when he reached his forties.

And then there was his hair; which had clearly been cut recently. He wanted to spend hours just running his fingers through that hair. After all, he knew that Tony had developed a fascination for his hands, why not give them both something that they wanted?

Stephen studied the tie and glasses (currently hanging from a pocket in his waistcoat) Tony wore, both the same scarlet red, standing out against Tony’s slightly tanned skin and his white pressed shirt.

The charcoal suit he’d chosen, with matching waistcoat, fit snugly over his legs, _god those legs_ , and his arse.

He looked _delectable_.

Stephen didn’t care if he never saw Tony again after tonight, he _had_ to see the man naked again at least once.

And soon.

When he came back to himself, Stephen was faced with Tony smirking at him again. He wondered whether most people would have considered him condescending, but Stephen adored it.

“You done dribbling, Strange?” he asked playfully, fully aware of what his suit was doing to the other man. This was the reason why he’d chosen it.

He had been watching as the other man’s eyes trailed up and down his body, focusing on his legs and crotch periodically, despite his obvious need to pretend that wasn’t what was happening.

The neurosurgeon was reacting _exactly_ how he wanted him to, “or would you like me to take you for lunch,”

Of course Stephen knew Tony was talking about going out for lunch, of course he did, but the only thought crossing his mind was ‘ _yes please, take me, I’ll do anything_ ’ and he really hoped that Tony didn’t notice the way the few words had affected him.

Tony chuckled to himself, he didn’t miss the raw hunger that had appeared in Stephen’s eyes. It had been obvious to him from the moment the two men had met at his party that Stephen wanted him, he just hadn’t anticipated him being _this_ interested.

But seeing that look in his eyes at that moment solidified to him that this was something that Stephen truly wanted. He didn’t just want Tony for his money, or just to get interesting news stories for the press to increase his own popularity.

Stephen looked almost as though he wanted to eat him alive for fear of starving, and that thought put Tony in a similar situation.

“I thought that we should check out Perry Street. I would usually just go for a burger myself but,” he smiled, looking Strange up and down appreciatively, “you know how it is when a hot guy agrees to go on a date with you, sweet cheeks, you’ve got to impress,”

“Sweet cheeks? Really, Stark?”

“What would you prefer? Munchkin?” he smirked as Stephen grimaced, “Cinnamon bun? Oh! I’ve got it: love muffin,”

Stephen rolled his eyes, a small smile gracing his face, “are we going for lunch, or not, Stark?”

Tony smiled back at him, “sure thing, baby cakes. Food first, seducing later,”

Both men walked into the elevator, Jarvis’ alerting them about the paparazzi outside. The two shared a knowing look, neither surprised that someone had caught wind of the two of them being together. Stephen would place all his money on the receptionist downstairs being the one to alert the media, especially since no one ever went to Stark’s penthouse, except Stark. He didn’t even bring girls back here after a night out. Or so Stephen had heard.

“What about the back exit, Jar?”

“All exits are currently blocked by the press, sir. Unfortunately, based on my calculations, the front entrance is the easiest way for you and Mister Strange to leave the building,”

In a moment of confidence, or stupidity as some may say, Stephen reached for Tony’s hand, folding their fingers together and gripping tightly, showing both himself and everyone that would be waiting outside to catch a glimpse of them that they were together. That’d give the press something to talk about.

He glanced sideways, seeing the slight smirk on the billionaire’s face as he refused to look anywhere but forward.

Tony pulled his glasses out from his waistcoat, a difficult task with only one hand available to him, and put them on steadily, letting out a low breath.

“Armour ready, Stark?” Stephen asked, trying not to let on that he was the one that was panicking slightly.

“Always, Strange,” was the reply.

Tony took a deep breath, “Mister Hogan is waiting outside the door on the right, sir,” Jarvis informed them.

“Thank you, Jarvis,”

The doors of the elevator opened.

Both men’s eyes scanned the reception, noticing that the security team had managed to keep the press completely outside, which was a blessing in disguise.

Only Tony’s employees were in the building itself, but the silence that created was almost deafening.

Sharing a quick smile, trying to act as though they weren’t afraid of the headlines that would swarm the news tomorrow, they made their way outside.

There was a moment of silence, before, “Tony! Tony! Tony!” lights flashed from every side, causing both men to wince and hold their hands before their eyes.

“Tony! Any comment on your relationship?”

Tony felt a hand on his shoulder, its grip tight but comforting, “hey, Happy,”

“Good afternoon, sir. Don’t worry about the press, I’ll get you through. We’re going to find out who leaked the information about Mister Strange’s arrival,”

_Doctor Strange. Doctor._

“Very good, Happy. Lead the way,”

“Tony! Stephen!”

“Tony, Tony, Tony!”

The three men, headed by Happy and his signature ‘stand back’ pose, made their way through the herd of people, every time they moved, the crowd becoming seemingly bigger.

“What about your relationship with your personal assistant, Tony?”

“Tony! Stephen! Are you finally giving up your playboy names?”

The moment they made it to the car, the back windows blacked out to ensure that they would have all the privacy that they wanted when inside, a man from the crowd, louder than the rest of the journalists, shouted, “What do you have to say to the people who say that your father would be disappointed in you, Tony?”

That made most of the crowd freeze, Tony’s back straightening and his hand gripping Stephen’s tighter than it had been before.

“Tony,” Stephen said in a low voice, trying to catch the man’s attention.

Using his free hand, he pushed his glasses up his nose, took a steadying breath and turned to face the press, his hand letting Stephen’s fall to the side.

“Afternoon,” he said, a faux smile plastered on his face. If Stephen didn’t know any better, he would have said that the smile had been sown into Tony’s face, and Tony was using his ‘everyone can see me’ voice. This was _not_ going to be good.

“As many of you may have noticed, standing outside my building _uninvited_ , that I am leaving to go on a _private_ trip with one of the World’s best-known neurosurgeons, Doctor Stephen Strange,” he stopped momentarily to point at the taller man, a small smile playing on his lips as he saw how uncomfortable Stephen was looking, “but that is not any of your business, is it?”

With the cameras flashing in his eyes, it took him slightly longer than it would have done normally to pinpoint the man he was looking for. He was tall, with a slight snarl on his lips, who looked almost just as uncomfortable as Tony was feeling in that moment.

“As for my father, he didn’t give a crap about me when I was alive, so I really don’t think he’ll give a shit now, do you?” he opened the door to the car, allowing Stephen to get in before him, “Thank you, and goodnight,”

Tony stepped into the car, slamming the door behind him and letting out a long breath, fists tightening. He laughed slightly to himself, “I shouldn’t have done that,”

“Maybe not,” Stephen seconded, “I enjoyed it though,”

Tony spent the rest of the ride smirking to himself, quietly smug about the whole situation.

* * *

They arrived at Perry Street, the sun surprisingly warm for a February afternoon.

From the outside, Stephen could tell that this would never be a restaurant that he would go to on his own. Despite all the money that he made, he never really kept any of it.  

"Anyone ever told you that you have nice hands?" Stephen shook his head, clearly confused by the situation. Tony grabbed for his hand, stroking his thumb over it for a moment, “you have beautiful hands, Stephen. Don’t let anything bad happen to them,” Stephen smiled slightly at the billionaire, his chest fluttering slightly at the compliment.

It was one thing knowing that Tony had a thing for his hands, it was another thing entirely hearing the man talk about them like that. Usually when people described Stephen, they would just talk about how nasty and up his own arse he was, so Tony complimenting him was a pleasant surprise.

Once inside the restaurant, Tony relayed his name to the hostess (as if he had needed to do so) and they were led to a table at the back where they would not be seen by anyone else. It was cosy, Stephen decided.

Tony held Stephen’s chair out for him, “thank you, Tony,” allowing his hand to drag along Stephen’s shoulder once the man was seated.

He sat down slowly, looking across the table to watch Stephen as his hands slowly stroked the menu. Such a small act shouldn’t have made Tony’s heart flutter like it did.

_What couldn’t those hands do?_

Grey eyes met his, a smirk forming on the other man’s lips. _God those lips_.

“Anything you fancy?” _You._

Tony fumbled over his words, spit caught in is throat, “food first, seducing later, Stark,” Stephen said.

“I-I think I’m going to have the crusted tuna and the duck with passion fruit and olives,” _But you would be tasty too._ “What about you?” _Please. Say that we can just leave._

“I’m going to have the Spanish octopus and the beef tenderloin,” _Everything sounds almost as good as you._

Stephen remembered their first date well. He remembered watching as Tony, who had been calm until they had sat down in the restaurant itself, clearly happy that they’d escaped from the hoard of people that had attempted to ruin their date before it had even properly started, as he slowly became more and more flustered.

Looking back at it now, thirteen years down the line and hundreds of hours spent in Tony’s company in that time, Stephen could practically tell what Tony had been thinking about his lips and about how he had wanted to eat him almost as much as he wanted to eat the food on offer.

When the waitress arrived, Tony ordered a whiskey and Stephen ordered a rhubarb gin and ginger ale which made Tony laugh slightly (“Didn’t take you for anything more than a straight gin and tonic man, Strange”­), and they placed their food orders, both hoping that the date would go slow enough to get to know each other, but fast enough so that they could go and hide themselves away in the penthouse for the rest of the weekend.

“So,” Stephen said in a low tone, once their drinks had been placed before them, his finger following the glass’ rim around and around with the tip of his finger as though trying to put Tony in some form of trance, “tell me about the man behind the sunglasses,”

Tony stared at him for a moment, pulling the glasses from his face and placing them down on the table, “well, my father was Howard Stark, the man of the-“

“No,” Stephen interrupted, grabbing Tony’s hand from across the table, “tell me about _you_ ,”

“Well, the only person I truly bonded to in my family was Jarvis, our butler that my father brought home with him from his time in England. He used to let me follow him around like a shadow. I’d watch him cook, not that I ever learnt to do so for myself, of course. My parents weren’t around much, you see so I would sit at home, working on my own projects or reading Captain America comics,” he smiled to himself slightly, remembering all the times Jarvis had woken him up curled around the latest comic he owned.

“You were a Captain America fan then?” Stephen teased.

“Oh yeah, _big_ fan. Especially when I became a teenager and everything suddenly I realised that it wasn’t just girls I was into,”

Stephen laughed, imagining a younger Tony furiously trying to get come off of his comics.

“Jarvis bought me those comics, every single one of them.

“Then I went to MIT, met Rhodey, who became my only friend whilst I was there. He was the only person that could put up with me really,” he met Stephen’s eyes over the table for a moment, finding them to be sympathetic before he admitted, “We tried being in a relationship for a little while, but it didn’t really work out. Rhodey is a good guy, I didn’t want to keep him from doing what was best for him, and that didn’t involve him being my boyfriend, so we parted on good terms.

“And then when my dad died I took over Stark Industries,” he took a sip of his whiskey, moving the glass around on the table as he swallowed.

“It’s good that you and Rhodey are still close after all these years,” Stephen said, his eyes catching Tony’s, a smile plastered on his face.

“Don’t know what I’d do without him, honestly,” Tony laughed to himself, gripping Stephen’s hand, “promise me you will _never_ tell him that I told you that. I’ve got an image to uphold,”

“Don’t we all,” Stephen murmured, a sad look momentarily crossing his features.

Before Tony could say anything in response, the food was delivered to their table and the conversation was dropped completely. Tony was thankful for that, he hadn’t wanted to air his dirty laundry on the first date but Stephen as curious and he just couldn’t tell the man ‘no’, even if he tried.

The rest of the date went well. Really, _really_ well.

Tony couldn’t remember a date that had gone this well in his life, ever, even when he was in his twenties and had briefly tried with several different women for a long-term thing.

The two had talked about all the upcoming project’s Tony was planning, all the interesting surgeries Stephen had undertaken recently, and briefly about Stephen’s family.

Stephen had enjoyed his time getting to know the other man, even if he hadn’t meant for it to get as deep as it had so early on. He had just wanted Tony to tell him something about himself that he wouldn’t have read in the news, and he certainly got that – Tony Stark is a hardcore Captain America fan? Who knew – but he’d gotten a little more than he bargained for.

By the time they had finished, the tension surrounding them was thicker than it had been when Tony had left the pool completely naked a couple of hours before.

Tony and Stephen both knew that they wanted to see each other again after the weekend was over, and they’d bonded in a way neither of them could have imagined.

When both men were ready to leave, and desperate to get back to the penthouse as soon as they could, Tony threw a few bills onto the table with a, “that will be more than enough to cover the meal and the tip, babe”.

Holding each other’s hands tightly in their own, the two men made their way outside the restaurant to find Happy standing outside the car, “afternoon, sir. Pepper says that it should be safe to send the pair of you through the rear exit,”

Tony sniggered to himself, but a sharp look from Happy stopped the sound immediately, “Thank you, Happy,” he looked Stephen up and down, noticing that the man had slightly undone his tie and had opened the top two buttons on his shirt, “let’s just make it quick, Happy,”

He dragged Stephen into the car by the lapels on his suit, Stephen’s surprised and excited giggle following him into the car.

In the car, the partition rolled all the way up, Tony dragged Stephen’s body across his own, his hands finding their way over his back and down to his arse, his face hidden in the other man’s neck. He ran his nose along the space the opening of the shirt had created, the smell of cologne and just pure Stephen filling his nose. Tony sighed slightly to himself, finding that he quite enjoyed Stephen between his legs and surrounding him so completely that there was no way anyone could see him. The pale skin was too tempting for Tony to ignore, his lips placing tiny kisses along any skin that he could find, enjoying it when Stephen shivered slightly.

Once the car started to move, Stephen held himself up slightly, giving himself room to see Tony’s face.

Tony’s pupils were blown wide, his breathing slightly deeper and lust apparent across his face.

“Are you sure about this?” Stephen asked, his eyes searching for any sign of discomfort in Tony’s features.

“Yes,” he breathed, his hands tightening where they rested on Stephen’s back, and his legs curling around the ones between his own.

Satisfied, both with Tony’s answer and the look in his eyes, Stephen moved slightly closer to Tony until they were a breath apart from one another.

Tony moved his head up, trying to put his mouth on Stephen’s, but the neurosurgeon moved away at the last second, a small, teasing smile on his face, as he watched the desperation in Tony’s movements grow.

“Enough games,” Tony growled, his hand moving to grab Stephen’s head, and forcing their lips together finally, _finally_!

At first it was just a press of lips, Stephen’s breath tickling his mouth and waiting. Then Stephen started to move, putting pressure behind his movements, and threading his fingers through Tony’s hair so that he could hold him as close as possible.

Tony was the first to want more, his tongue pressing insistently against Stephen’s lips, _begging_ the man to let him in.

Stephen did.

And it was fucking _wonderful_.

He wanted to stay like this for the rest of his life. Hell, he wanted to die like this. Just kissing someone who clearly cared enough about him, but still _wanted_ him because who wouldn’t want to be with someone as attractive as him, right?

Tony could taste the rhubarb and ginger on the other man’s tongue, the taste nice but not exactly what he was looking for. He moved to taste around Stephen’s mouth, trying to find what the man himself tasted like.

His hands kneaded the flesh of Stephen’s arse, something that he had wanted to do from the moment that he had met the man, and moving the other man’s body against him between his legs. Perhaps not in a totally appropriate way for a car travelling through NYC, he would think later but in the moment, all he wanted was Stephen.

Feeling his inner teenager taking over, Tony realised that he wanted to leave bruises all over Stephen’s neck. He wanted everyone to know that Stephen Strange was his, and his alone, thank you very much.

He wanted to store the smell of Stephen in a bottle.

He wanted to suck on his fingers, those _goddamn fucking fingers_ , until they were wet enough to open himself up with.

They had been so lost in each other, that they didn’t notice that they had arrived back at Stark Tower until Happy knocked loudly on the window and opened the door closest to both men’s feet.

“We have arrived, Mister Stark,”

Tony smirked, “to be continued,” he said, kissing Stephen briefly, and allowing the taller man to exit the car.

Stephen brushed his hands down his suit in an attempt to make himself look more presentable, which didn’t work, and held his hand out to help Tony get out of the car.

“Ever the gentleman, Strange,” Tony giggled, “little would anyone know that we were rutting against each other like animals moments ago,”

A blush crossed the neurosurgeon’s face, not from embarrassment but from the crass way Tony described what they were doing. He didn’t think it possible that he could be more turned on than he had been in the car. He was wrong.

Holding each other’s hands tightly, trying not to show how turned on they had both become to everyone in Stark Tower at the moment, they made their way through the back entrance and into the elevator, the tension only seeming to increase from there.

“Penthouse, please, Jarvis,” Tony said, his voice rough and deep.

“Of course, sir,”

Tony looked at his date, noticing that he was breathing deeply, “fast as you can, Jar,” he muttered, turning to face Stephen and staring him down as much as he could despite being the smaller of the two. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! 
> 
> I based Tony's suit for the date on the one he's wearing in Civil War where he's fighting Bucky with only one hand of armour on because that was a look. I also looked up actual restaurants and the one I choose looked so good that I'm considering flying out to New York to experience it for myself.
> 
> Leave me a comment, if you want :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now they're alone in the penthouse, what will Stephen and Tony get up to?

Under Tony’s heated gaze, Stephen moved quickly, pushing Tony up against the side of the elevator, slamming their lips together and tangling his hands in his hair. Tony’s hand moved to cup Stephen’s jaw, the other man’s mouth opening willingly at the silent request. He thrust his tongue in eagerly, trying to taste every part of Stephen’s mouth that he could reach.

Attempting to rub their crotches together, and finding himself too short to do so, a whine left Tony’s throat, his hands gripping Stephen’s shoulders tightly.

Stephen knew _exactly_ what they both wanted, both _needed_ , his hands sliding down from Tony’s hair to his thighs, gripping them tightly and lifting. Tony, letting out a little giggle of glee, wrapped his legs around Stephen’s waist, his hands moving to fist themselves in Stephen’s hair to hold the neurosurgeon as close to him as he could get.

They weren’t close enough.

Keeping one of his hands under Tony’s arse and moving the other to hold the back of hid head, Stephen pushed them closer to the wall, trapping Tony there completely with his hips.

Before Tony could even consider trying to create any kind of friction from this position, a voice from above spoke, “You might like to know, sir, that we have arrived at the penthouse,”

Stephen was sure that if he could, Jarvis would be laughing at them.

“Alrighty then. Let me down,”

Stephen tightened his grip in response, walking into the penthouse with Tony clinging to his him like a monkey.

“Call me a monkey again and I’ll kick you out of my building,” Stephen chuckled, realising that he must have voiced his thoughts out loud.

“That sounds like it would be worse for you than it is for me,”

“Completely nude,”

Stephen considered this for a moment, not at all ashamed of his body, “something tells me that you wouldn’t mind that, Stark,”

Tony laughed, “I’d consider it an early birthday present,” he said, clinging just that little bit tighter to the other man. He moved his head, sniffing at Stephen’s neck. _Ooooh_ , he thought, remembering just how _good_ he had smelt in the back of the car. _Maybe just another quick taste…_

Stephen giggled, his hand stroking slowly over Tony’s arse, enjoying the feeling of Tony nibbling on his neck, stumbling slightly through the hallway, _where exactly is the –_

“The bedroom is just down here on the right, sweet cheeks,” Tony mumbled, trying to keep his mouth on as much of Stephen’s neck as he could.

Approaching a glass door, that slid open at Tony’s mumbled “Jarvis”, Stephen wondered just how kinky the smaller man really was. A bedroom door that anyone could see through, a fascination with people’s fingers and necks, and letting Stephen pin him to the side of an elevator even though anyone could have gotten on at any point on their way up to the penthouse.

He’d vote for ‘very’ and see just where it took him. They had time to explore.

Inside the room, which he decided to explore later, Stephen placed Tony down on the edge of his bed, the other man already moving to take off his tie.

Tony was quick in removing his clothes, clearly not trying to give Stephen any kind of show but succeeding in making him more excited all the same. Stephen couldn’t stop staring at the smooth skin that was being revealed to him, this time knowing that he would finally be able to touch it, to _taste_ it, and that thought alone made him go from half hard in his trousers to completely turned on.

He needed to get his clothes off. _Now_.

Clearly Tony had been thinking the same thing, as he jumped up from the bed, throwing Stephen down on it and pouncing on him. He crushed his lips against Stephen’s, delving his tongue deep into the other man’s mouth, feeling long hands gripping at his back.

Tony rolled his hips, pressing down against the bulge in Stephen’s trousers. Both men moaned loudly, Stephen raking his fingernails down Tony’s shoulder blades, making Tony moan louder and thrust his hips forward. He needed more friction dammit! The trousers had to go.

His hands started to pull at the button below him, trying not to yank too hard on the suit that Stephen had clearly chosen just for him, desperate to see how the taller man looked underneath all the clothes.

As Tony removed the bottom half of his suit, save for his underwear, Stephen made light work of the top half, ensuring that he was the least dressed of the two men.

Chucking his shirt somewhere over Tony’s shoulder, he made eye contact with the engineer, seeing the lust in his eyes as he stared at the very visible erection that was trapped in his underwear. Tony was still wearing his own trousers, unbuttoned and riding low on his hips, a dark trail of hair leading down into the one place Stephen wanted to see again the most. He gave the man an appreciative glance.

Tony stood watching for a moment, admiring the view. _Holy shit_. How Stephen could look this good, he didn’t know. But he could say for sure that the suits the man wore didn’t do him any kind of favours, and that was saying something.

“You gonna just stand there, or are you going to fuck me?” Stephen said, his eyebrows raised, and his mouth open slightly, panting.

Tony moaned deep in his throat, he always did enjoy working under pressure. He dropped his trousers and underwear at the same time and crawled onto the bed. His cock hung hot and heavy between his legs, bobbing slowly as Tony moved to take the other man’s underwear off. He was bordering on desperate to see Stephen’s dick at this point, his mouth salivating at just the thought of it.

He mouthed at the fabric of Stephen’s underwear, ensuring that the other man was rock hard. Stephen’s hands fisted themselves into the bedsheets, a loud moan escaping his mouth at the first touch of Tony’s lips.

“O-off, take them off,” he almost begged, though he would never admit to doing so later, wanting Tony’s mouth around him completely.

“Sure, princess,”

Tony yanked the last barrier off, throwing the underwear somewhere behind him, and stared down at the sight below him. Stephen was spread out on the bed, his legs falling open, breathing deeply and looking positively delectable. His cock, slightly longer and thinner than Tony’s, and a deep dark red, bobbed against his body spreading precome all over himself.

Tony moved to hold Stephen in his fist, the heat surprising him slightly, and licked his lips at the sight. This was it, he was finally going to get his lips around Stephen Strange. He didn’t hesitate a moment longer, lowering his mouth to the head. He placed a small kiss there, savouring the sound that left Stephen’s mouth at the contact.

“Keep going,”

Tony complied, pulling the foreskin back and sucking the head fully into his mouth, holding Stephen’s hips down when the other man tried to buck into him. Stephen whined slightly, “come _on_ , Tony,” desperation long thrown out the window, “not scared of a little bit of deepthroating, are you?” he smirked, watching as Tony’s eyebrows raised. The fist on his cock tightened, the other man smiling slightly before putting his mouth back onto Stephen.

He moved down slowly, ensuring he maintained eye contact with the neurosurgeon as he took as much of Stephen as he could, his fist taking care of the rest. Eventually his throat rebels, and he has to come up for air.

“You don’t have to –,“ Stephen starts.

Tony swallows the spit that has built up at the back of his mouth, looking Stephen dead in the eye. Perhaps the one useful bit of advice his dad had given him came to mind: Stark men didn’t quit.

The next time he takes Stephen in almost entirely, the head hitting the back of his throat. Tony wants to cough, only just managing to keep his gag reflex under control.

It’s no secret that he’s slept with a few guys (and a _few_ more women), and yet, he’s never really been on the giving side of oral sex with men. Now he wishes that he had, not only so that he could give Stephen the best blow job of his fucking life, but because he was really fucking enjoying giving someone head.

He swallowed, Stephen moaning and moving his hands to tangle in Tony’s hair, trying to gain some semblance of control over the situation.

Tony lifted his head up, licking a drop of precoma that had appeared at the top of Stephen’s cock, and batting his eyelashes slightly, “fuck my mouth,” he said, taking the entirety of Stephen back into his mouth.

“What?”

Tony pulled off with a pop, his eyes almost completely black with lust, and his fingernails making slight dents in Stephen’s hips, “Fuck. My. Mouth,” he smiled, once again taking Stephen to the hilt, the head touching the back of his throat. He managed to keep his gag reflex at bay for now.

Stephen’s hands tightened in Tony’s hair, pulling his head back until just the tip of his cock was left in his mouth before thrusting back in. His cock hit the back of Tony’s throat again, a moan leaving the smaller man’s mouth, causing his hips to buck further into the warm heat of Tony’s mouth. The smaller man gagged slightly, running his hands down Stephen’s hips to let him know that he was _more_ than okay with the way this way going.

He did.

Stephen spent the next five minutes slowly fucking Tony’s throat, wanting to savour the feeling in case it didn’t happen again. Best fucking blowjob of his life.

When he started to see stars behind his eyes, a familiar feeling building up inside him, he pulled Tony off his cock by his hair. Tony trailed his tongue the entire way up Stephen’s body, stopping the dip inside his belly button, bite the soft skin on his stomach and to suck on his nipples.

Stephen decided that it had been entirely too long since he’d kissed Tony, clutching the back of his neck and pulling him up to press their lips together sloppily. He could taste himself on Tony’s tongue, but there was still something so distinctly _Tony_ about the taste.

He wanted to kiss Tony for as long as he could, but it seemed that Tony had other ideas.

The billionaire pulled away abruptly, “As much as I’d like to take you apart completely with my mouth alone, I really want you to fuck me, Strange,” he said, gripping Stephen’s chin in his hand and turning his head so that he could suck an impressive mark into the side of his neck.

He slowly moved his way down Stephen’s body.

Stephen moaned, “so you really do like it up the arse then,” he chuckled to himself, “me too,” he started giggling quietly to himself, his entire body shaking with the force of trying to keep himself as quiet as he could.

Tony sighed against the skin nearest his mouth, which was currently Stephen’s nipple, the air tickling it slightly. He gave the bud a lick, “as much as I’d like to stick my cock in you, I’d rather not be able to walk for the rest of the weekend,” the younger man moaned, Tony seemingly having read his mind from earlier that afternoon, “would you like that, princess?”

That nickname drove Stephen wild, his hips bucking up against Tony’s chest, “Oh God, yes!”

Stephen grabbed Tony by the shoulders, flipping them over so that he rested between Tony’s legs, “lube and condoms?”

Tony opened a drawer next the bed, dropping a large bottle of lube and a couple of condoms on the bed next to him. Stephen fixed him with a ‘really’ look, “What? If we wanna go again, I’d rather not have come dripping out my arse. And, you know, safe sex and all that,”

Stephen smiled in a secret little way that Tony had never had pleasure of seeing before, “maybe next time I’ll bring a plug,” he said, his finger circling Tony’s hole for a moment, “and you can walk around with my come still inside you whilst in a meeting with Pepper,”

“Mmm, that sounds good, baby,” Tony moaned, moving his head up to lick at the other man’s lips, “for now though, _fuck me_ ,” he looked at Stephen, noting the hooded eyes and flush on the other man’s face. He wanted to store the look in his memory until he died, thinking of it as art.

“Be careful what you wish for, Stark,” Stephen mumbled, reaching to grab the lube. He spread it generously over his fingers, planning to prepare Tony thoroughly for a whole new demonstration of the word ‘fuck’.

He placed his index finger against Tony’s hole, circling it to spread the lube around, before pushing in slowly.

“Oh god!” Tony shouted, his hips rising off the bed and hands tightening in the sheets below him, “Keep going,”

Stephen pushed his finger in as far as it would go, pulling it out and causing Tony to whine at the loss. Moving it in and out a couple of more times, he removed the finger completely, placing two fingers against Tony’s hole.

“Do you think you can take two?”

Tony nodded, “I need you to tell me verbally,”

“Yes! God, _please_ , put them in!”

As Stephen slowly stretched Tony open, Tony clenched and unclenched his hands in the sheets, trying to keep composed despite how turned on he was right now. He looked down at his cock, bobbing with the sway of his body following the way Stephen fingered him open. He curled his fist around it, moments before it was smacked away.

“Hey!”

“That’s mine, don’t touch it until I tell you to,” Stephen smiled, returning to the job at hand.

Tony just had to hold on as Stephen removed his fingers, only to return with three fingers pressed up against him, he moaned loudly at the pressure. _When the fuck will he get to my prostate_ Tony thought distractedly.

Looking down at the look of concentration on the neurosurgeon’s face, he realised that he had been right all along about Stephen’s fingers.

Pleasure spiked up Tony’s spine unexpectedly, Stephen finally, _fucking finally_ , hitting his prostate with his fingers, “Ah yes! Ugh, Steph- please, ugh,” he said, Stephen pressing roughly against his prostate.

Stephen was so focused on opening Tony up, placing kisses periodically to Tony’s thighs to try to keep the man relaxed around him, that he didn’t notice when the man started to laugh, “something funny, Stark?” he asked, “clearly I’m not doing my job well enough if you can still laugh at me,”

Tony hummed, almost in agreement, “I was just laughing because I was right all along,”

“With what?”

“Your fingers really are the most extraordinary part about you,”

Stephen laughed, pressing his fingers in firmly and pressing right against his prostate again. Tony moaned, tightening around the fingers, his back arching off the bed.

“Okay, I’m ready,” he was starting to get impatient, “I need your dick in me yesterday,” he said, throwing a condom at Stephen’s face. The younger man didn’t look impressed, but Tony was having the time of his life.

Stephen wiped his fingers on the sheets, tearing the wrapper open quickly. Tony stroked Stephen back to full hardness, ensuring that he would be completely ready to take him, and then rolled the condom onto Stephen’s cock.

Placing one final kiss onto Tony’s hipbone, Stephen took himself in hand and lined himself up with Tony. He took a deep breath, “ready?” receiving a squeaky ‘yes’ in return, before pushing the head of his cock into him.

_Holy fucking hell_

Only Stephen’s head was in him, but Tony felt like he was going to die right where he lay. When would he hurry the fuck up?

“I don’t want to cause any unnecessary damage,” Stephen said gruffly, breathing deeply through his nose to stop himself from coming, “I’m a surgeon, remember,”

Tony moaned, pushing himself up onto his elbows to stare at the other man, “your dirty talk needs some work, Ste – ugh,” he cut off, moaning loudly and moving to dig his fingernails into Stephen’s shoulders, Stephen having sheathed himself in Tony completely in a movement that had caught Tony by surprise.

Stephen bent over, Tony’s legs wrapped around his waist, so that he could speak directly into Tony’s ear, “I’m going to fuck you now, Tony,” he said huskily, “I’m going to fuck you,” he snapped his hips forward, causing Tony to moan, before pulling out all the way, “good and hard,” another snap of his hips, “until you can’t walk properly,”

Tony whimpered, grabbing Stephen’s arse and pulling him in as close as he could get, “get the fuck on with it, ugh,”

Stephen complied, moving his hips steadily in and out of Tony, revelling in the sounds that the smaller man was making below him. He took Tony’s earlobe into his mouth, biting and sucking on it in time with the thrust of his hips.

After a couple of times of Stephen’s aim missing, he finally (“finally”) hit Tony’s prostate dead on, causing him to scream, gripping Stephen’s biceps in his hands. He was sure that the bruises covering Stephen’s biceps would match the ones that would be on his hips from where Stephen was grabbing him, fucking into him harder than before now that he’d pinpointed exactly where Tony’s prostate was.

“You’re a screamer, huh?” Stephen smiled smugly.

“St-Stephen, please” Tony begged, gripping the man’s arms slightly tighter, “please,”

Stephen stopped abruptly, pulling out of Tony completely to move Tony’s legs so that they were resting over his shoulders, effectively bending the other man in half, before pushing back into Tony without any kind of warning, a loud scream leaving the other man.

“Fuck, Stephen, I should have fucked you years ago,”

Tony didn’t know whether that was the wrong thing to have said but, from there on out, Stephen was brutal. He fucked Tony without relenting, managing to hit his prostate on every two to three strokes in of his cock, panting steadily against Tony’s ear.

Tony couldn’t remember ever having sex that was this good, even with Rhodey back in college and he was _in love_ with the guy for fuck sake.

 _Shut the fuck up, Stark_ he thought to himself, _you’re here with this fucking gorgeous god of a man and you’re thinking about the guy whose heart you broke. Good fucking job, Tony._

Stephen could tell that Tony wasn’t paying attention to him anymore, and that was _not_ acceptable, “if you don’t stay here with me,” he started, “I’ll come in your arse, get dressed and leave,”

Tony gripped the back of Stephen’s neck in response, his fingernails digging in, “don’t you dare,”

Stephen moved harder against him, the sound of their skin slapping together filling the room. They moved together for a while, moaning into each other’s mouths, their lips reddening at the contact. Stephen, feeling himself getting close, turned his head to breathe deeply into Tony’s neck, knowing they were nearing the end.

“I’m fucking close,” Tony moaned, turning Stephen’s head so that he could bite at the man’s lips. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realised that he wanted to paint Stephen’s lips, keeping them as a piece of art in his life forever. He wanted to watch those lips laugh, he wanted to suck on them until they turned a bright red and everyone knew that they’d been making out like teenagers, he wanted to fuck them with his dick and make Stephen choke, spit dribbling out of his mouth.

He wanted Stephen.

“I’m – I’m close,” Tony stuttered, feeling something rising quickly inside him.

Stephen grabbed one of Tony’s hands, lacing their fingers together, and pinning it to the bed above both of their heads. He moved faster, harder, _harsher_ , trying to make Tony feel as much pleasure as possible.

When Tony’s whines, which had steadily become louder and higher as Stephen moved inside him, became completely silent, Stephen removed the hand that was holding Tony’s down to stroke his neglected dick.

After a couple of harsh strokes, Stephen whispered directly into Tony’s ear, “come for me, sweetheart,”

Tony let out a sound that could only be described as a howl, come spurting out of his cock and all over both of their chests. Stephen slowed slightly, fucking the billionaire through his orgasm but not wanting to overload him completely with sensation.

When Tony stopped coming, he pulled Stephen close to kiss him, his tongue swirling around his mouth. Biting his lip for a moment, he pulled away to say, “I want everyone to know you’re mine when we go out tonight,” he moaned when Stephen moved in him slightly.

Stephen, seeing no reason to continue holding back now that Tony had given him permission to come, started to thrust, his hands moving to grip Tony’s hips tightly, ensuring that he would have bruises there tomorrow. He heard the bed move below them, his thrusts speeding up before, “Oh, _fuck_ , ugh _Tony_ ,” come filling up the condom as he came. He dropped Tony’s legs from his shoulders, placing a kiss to his forehead and breathing deeply in an attempt to calm himself down.

Tony sighed, content and happier than he had been in a long, long time. He wanted to hold Stephen close to him, and never leave this bed again. As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Stephen slid himself out of Tony, removing the condom and throwing it away.

He walked to the bathroom, grabbing a flannel from Tony’s bathroom, and wiping down both of their chests. He didn’t fancy falling asleep with drying come on his chest.

Stephen threw the flannel back in the bathroom, not particularly bothered with where it landed, before jumping on the bed and cuddling up close.

Resting his head on Tony’s chest, he listened to the steady heartbeat of his boyfriend…?

“Boyfriend is fine,” Tony murmured, smiling to himself.

_Oh god, had he said that out loud?_

Tony’s hand reached up to stroke through Stephen’s sweaty hair, “I’d love to be your boyfriend,” he said, smiling warmly when the younger man looked up at him through his lashes and heavy hooded eyes, “I like you, Strange,”

Stephen smiled, his hand moving to hold the hand that was holding his face, “I like you too,” he placed a small kiss on Tony’s lips, humming when he felt him kissing back, “only because you’re a good lay,”

Tony laughed, hugging Stephen close to his chest and letting out a small, content sigh, “compliments will get you everything, sweet cheeks,”

With the heat of Stephen laying against him, a conclusion to the first part of their date that Tony had hoped for but hadn’t expected, he felt his eyes getting heavy.

“Sleep Tony,” he heard, “I’ll be here when you wake up,”

And he did just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! And thank you to anyone who left me a comment, they really help motivate me to write more!
> 
> Next up: Tony and Stephen spend the rest of the weekend together, but will it go without a hitch?


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A storm hits the relationship, but will it survive?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had major writers block for this fic this week, so I'm sorry if this chapter is awful.
> 
> Enjoy.

When Stephen woke up hours later, he was spooning Tony, holding his back close to his chest. He sniffed slightly at Tony’s hair, smelling cologne and sex and Tony all at once.

It was then he realised why he’d woken up, a gentle throbbing in his bladder making him uncomfortable. _Ah_. He didn’t want to wake Tony, the engineer looking tired even as he slept, but he really needed to go to the toilet. Yesterday.

He rolled away from his boyfriend, _boyfriend_ , slowly, trying not to jostle the other man too much. His arm got stuck under Tony’s hip for a moment, causing him to moan under his breath before rolling completely onto his front, and off Stephen’s arm. _Well, that could have gone a lot worse_.

Stephen padded across Tony’s room as quietly has he could manage, nearly tripping over their shoes in the process. He opened the door to the bathroom, the light turning on immediately, blinding Stephen momentarily.

“Apologies, Doctor Strange,” a quiet voice said form above him, he rubbed his eyes slightly in an attempt to wake himself up a bit to adjust to the light, “let me lower the lights for you,” the lights dimmed, becoming a mellow yellow colour.

Stephen opened his eyes fully, looking around the bathroom. He admired the shower, big enough for at least four grown men to share, and was suddenly struck with an image of Tony’s face pressed against the glass as Stephen fucked into him from behind. Now _that_ was an image.

He took a piss, sighing at the pressure it relieved in his body. After flushing it, and washing his hands in the sink, Stephen stood for a moment, contemplating what had actually happened today. He couldn’t believe in the space of six hours they’d gone on their first date, fucked and agreed to be boyfriends.

Tony Stark was his _boyfriend_.

He smiled brightly, fingers tracing his lips slightly. He turned to study himself in the mirror, pleased to see all the bruising that covered his neck and chest, and the beard burn that decorated the rim of his mouth. Tony had really done a number on him, that was for sure.

And he loved it.

“Sir, Mister Stark is awake now, and he seems distressed,” Stephen took a deep breath, quickly leaving the bathroom to find Tony stalking around the room completely naked, muttering to himself under his breath.

“Tony?” he asked softly.

Tony turned, his hair wild and framing his face, staring almost straight through Stephen, “I thought you’d gone,” he said, crossing his arms across his chest and leaving absolutely nothing to Stephen’s imagination.

“I needed to take a piss,”

Stephen saw Tony’s features soften slightly, his shoulders sagging, “oh,” causing Stephen to smile slightly to himself, “I had a nightmare and you weren’t there when I woke up so, I didn’t know what to think,” he said sadly, causing the smile to fall from Tony’s face.

“You thought I’d fuck you and leave?” he chuckled, “thought you didn’t listen to the media’s opinion,”

Tony’s face dropped, obviously having realised his mistake, “I, um. I’m sorry, I just didn’t know what to think and-”

Stephen’s eyebrows rose, potentially more shocked than he had been in his entire life, and rushed forward to take Tony’s face in his hands, “hey, hey it’s alright,” he pulled Tony in for a hug, almost crushing the man against his chest, “I was just playing around,”

Tony whimpered against Stephen’s chest, “do you want to talk about it?” Stephen asked him, peppering kisses onto his hair. Tony shook his head, holding Stephen closer to him instead.

“Anytime you want to talk, just give me a call, okay?” Tony nodded.

Tony recovered quickly, his hands moving down to grab Stephen’s arse tightly.

“Want another round before dinner?” he asked, biting his lip slightly and looking up coyly through his eyelashes.

Stephen chuckled, “how could I say no?” he asked, pushing them both down onto the bed, giggling as they went.  


* * *

A couple of hours later, and a shower full of not so subtle touches to one another, the two men made their way into the penthouse’s kitchen.

“Jarvis,” Tony had called out as they’d gotten out of the shower, “can you order us some Chinese?”

“Of course, sir,”

And true to the AI’s word, when they made it into the kitchen, the whole kitchen island was full of food, and Stephen thought it smelt amazing.

The two of them were dressed only in sweatpants, ready to get naked again at any opportunity. Unfortunately for Stephen, but to Tony’s great amusement, he was a lot taller than Tony, so the sweats didn’t necessarily fit in all the right places. The ankles grazed his shins, the material clinging to his butt rather nicely, in Tony’s opinion.

“Tuck in,” Tony said, a massive grin on his face, secretly enjoying the view the sweatpants were giving him. Stephen decided that he wanted to make Tony smile as often as he could. He deserved to be happy.

Stephen leant over the island, reaching for the lemon chicken at the opposite side of all the food in front of them, and giving Tony a frankly pornographic view of his arse. Tony moved to curl himself around Stephen’s back, kissing the back of his neck and rocking slowly against him. Stephen laughed, pushing himself back into his boyfriend.

“My my, this food does look tasty,” Stephen teased, knowing exactly what Tony wanted. But he was hungry, and he was going to _eat_ even if he had to tie Tony to a chair to do so.

“I think you look tastier,”

Stephen laughed, spooning a pile of egg fried rice onto his plate, “I’m hungry,”

Tony continued to kiss his neck, using one of his hands to grab a prawn cracker from the table, “I’m hungry for you,” he said, walking around the other side of the island, shoving the prawn cracker into his mouth messily.

Stephen smirked at Tony, watching pieces of cracker fall out of his mouth as the man smiled at him, “food first, seduction later,”

Tony snorted, “that’s practically our motto at this point, sweet cheeks,” he said, shoving another cracker into his mouth, crumbs falling onto his chest.

“What can I say,” Stephen smirked, “I have quite the appetite,” he said, shovelling a spoonful of chicken and rice into his mouth. He moaned, his eyes closing in pleasure, “Oh god, this might just be the best lemon chicken I have ever had,”

“Never would have taken you for a sweet chicken kind of guy, Strange,” Tony said, piling his plate high with egg fried rice, black bean pork, prawn crackers and vegetable spring rolls, Stephen watching him in amusement.

“Well, I wouldn’t have taken you for an ordering a Chinese kind of person,” Stephen spooned more chicken into his mouth, chewing it slowly before meeting Tony’s eye and telling him, “When I got here, I honestly expected you to have a herd of servants parading around the place, conforming to your every whim,”

Tony placed his fork down on the island, swallowing the food that was in his mouth, “Is that so?”

Stephen smiled widely, Tony’s eyes widening in understanding. He hung his head, shaking it slightly, “ah, you’re a funny guy,”

“I try, Stark,” Stephen said, holding his hand over his left chest, laughing to himself. When he didn’t see Tony laughing, he muttered to himself, “at least I find myself funny, I suppose,”

“Someone has to,”

For the first time since he’d been in Tony’s company, Stephen began to feel uncomfortable. He didn’t want to presume that Tony didn’t want him there, because why would he have agreed to be his boyfriend if he didn’t want to be with him?

Maybe he was still shaken about his nightmare…

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about your nightmare, sweetheart?”

Tony stared at him, his eyes cold and hard, “what part of ‘no’ don’t you understand?”

Stephen pretended to think for a moment, holding his cutlery tightly in his hands, “The part where you say no when you actually mean yes,” he shoved a piece of chicken in his mouth, chewing it angrily. _Stay calm_.

Tony’s eyes were brewing with something almost like hatred for Stephen, he could see it there, lingering and building. What he didn’t understand was how things between them had managed to get _this_ bad this quickly.

“Look, Tony, I—”

“Get out,”

Stephen choked on his spit, spluttering out a, “ _what?_ ” before Tony pushed his plate away from himself and stormed out the room, the tension not following him, but hovering in the air around Stephen.

He sat for a few moments, in silence, coming back to himself when someone cleared their throat loudly. He turned his head, fingers stroking his lips.

“Mister Stark isn’t a relationship kind of guy, Doctor Strange,” Pepper told him quietly, both of her hands in front of her, holding the suit he had been wearing earlier on in the day. He shook his head slightly in response, “but, in the time I’ve worked for him, he’s never been happier than he has been with you,” she said honestly.

“Does he have nightmares often?” Stephen asked, his face tired and body sagging, “I --,” he sighed, “I just wanted to get to know him and help him,”

Pepper nodded, “I know,” she held out his clothes, “He’ll come around, sir,” she smiled at him, Stephen standing and taking his clothes from her, “you’re special to him,” she walked out of the room, almost humming to herself on the way.

Stephen sighed, deciding he would let this blow over. He had work to do anyway.   


* * *

At eleven the next night, Stephen’s head was buried in a case about a man who’d died after he’d been stabbed three millimetres away from the spine. “I could have saved him,” he said to himself, over and over, knowing that he was right but also trying not to think about Tony not having turned up the entire day to apologise or at least dump him.

So deep in thought he had become that he didn’t even notice when Tony let himself into his flat, holding a bag full of Thai food. It was the smell of the food that awoke Stephen from his own mind, his eyes quickly finding Tony in the darkness of his apartment.

He placed his pen down on the table, his hands coming to fold together on the table as he leant backwards on his chair, “do you make a habit of breaking and entering?”

Tony laughed, “not usually no,” he looked around Stephen’s apartment, noticing that the man who was making money almost every minute didn’t have many belongings to his name. He didn’t mention it though, choosing instead to walk a bit closer to Stephen, “I, um, I actually came to apologise… to you,” he sighed, “I came to apologise to you,”

“Huh,” Stephen said, “is that so?”

Tony held up the bag of food, “I bought Thai,”

“Hmm,” Stephen hummed to himself, crossing one leg over the other.

“Since the Chinese didn’t work out, I thought we’d try something else,” he laughed, joking to try and lighten the mood.

Stephen just continued to stare, clearly waiting.

“I—” Tony started, his shoulders sagging, and the trademark smile falling from his face, “I’m really sorry, sweet cheeks,” he took a deep breath, shaking his head as though he was trying to clear it.

“I’ve never spoken to anyone about, um, about the nightmares,” he admitted, looking Stephen dead in the eyes, “I’ve had them since Jarvis died,” he said, “but that’s all I’m saying. Please, accept that,”

Stephen nodded, pursing his lips in thought, “Apology accepted, sweetheart. I promise I won’t ask you again,” he stood up, walking towards Tony slowly, hands at his side in a surrender pose, “unless you want to talk about it, of course,” he stood in front of Tony, holding his hands out to him.

“Let’s just say we’re even,” he smiled.

Tony took Stephen’s hands in his own, “Sure thing, lover boy,” he said pulling Stephen close so that he could kiss him, “now let’s party,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, we zoom out a bit to look at their relationship over a longer period of time. What could go wrong, right?


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go downhill.

Things were great. For a while at least.

For the next two years, Stephen spent more time at Stark Tower than he did in his own apartment. Tony’s place was far better than his apartment anyway. Between Pepper and Jarvis, his needs were always taken care of, and eventually he became relatively good friends with Pepper.

After all, she had been the one to convince Stephen to wait for Tony to apologise. The two of them came up with an idea on how to keep each other in the loop, so that nothing like what had happened before would happen again, involving drinking gin together on nights where Tony vanished down into his workshop. They discussed what had led them both into the careers they were in today, how much they both liked Tony, even if the man gave them very little reason to do so, and sometimes just watched sappy rom coms that they were too embarrassed to admit watching.

They went on dates, but most of their relationship revolved around hours of hot, mind-blowing sex that would never be beaten for Stephen.

Not that it wasn’t _fantastic_ sex, it was more the fact that sex couldn’t solve everything, Stephen knew that.

Tony, well-aware that Stephen had no money to his name, took him to his mansion in Malibu every weekend (unless Stephen had to see an important patient, which happened far more often than Stephen would care to admit) and they would spend most of their time either in Tony’s bed or playing the piano.

The first time Stephen told Tony that he loved him, it was six months into their relationship. They’d been to the cinema to see ‘ _Kill Bill: Vol 1_ ’, which had been completely Stephen’s idea because who didn’t find a woman in a yellow jumpsuit, murdering a bunch of people who wronged her, romantic?

Stephen wanted to walk back to the tower after the movie, Happy reluctantly agreeing as long as he could follow slowly behind them in Tony’s car to make sure the two of them didn’t get kidnapped.

“As if anyone would be able to kidnap Tony Stark,” Stephen had said, laughter shimmering in his eyes.

After ten minutes of walking, Stephen realised that he needed to tell Tony that he loved him, properly. They’d spent the past two months saying ‘love you’ at the end of text messages, but this was more out of habit than it was actual feeling. Now though, Stephen knew that he was in love with his boyfriend.

Sitting on a wall, watching the sunset, he cleared his throat, “I’m in love with you,”

Tony had just smiled, kissing him softly, “I know,”

One their one-year anniversary, Tony had taken Stephen to the balcony where they had first agreed to go on a date together, the whole place decorated with candles and with a perfect view of the New York skyline. Tony had cooked, well he had _tried_ to cook, almost setting fire to his kitchen in the process, so he’d ended up ordering food instead.

“I thought we’d change our relationship with Chinese,” he had said, laughing to himself. He had watched Stephen eat for a good five minutes, admiring the man’s fingers as they gripped the chopsticks perfectly, before he said, “I’m in love with you,” which made Stephen choke on the rice that he had been chewing at that moment.

“Finally,” he smiled, taking a sip of water, “I love you too,”

Stephen had ensured that Tony enjoyed himself that night.

At this point, their relationship started to crumble. Tony started to work longer hours, he wouldn’t invite Stephen to the tower as often, and even when the neurosurgeon was there, he would rarely leave his workshop, leaving Stephen to sleep in an empty bed, wondering what he’d done wrong.

Although they went to several events together, people long forgot about Tony’s relationship with Stephen, instead claiming that he was sleeping with several different women from several different newspaper companies, each with ‘concrete’ proof of their liaisons.

Tony would sneak into Stephen’s apartment late at night, finding him staring at the wall as though he thought he could make a hole in it with his eyes. Tony would have quipped about the surgeon needing magic to be able to do something like that, but he spent most of his time apologising and trying to convince Stephen that what the women were saying wasn’t true at all.

Stephen believed him, _he did_. Or at least he tried to.

He would never have admitted it to Tony at the time but, his self-confidence had become rather fragile in the time they had been together. It was easy to build again when he was single and able to have no strings attached sex with whoever he wanted to, of course.

Tony’s eyes wandered when they were at parties together, Stephen buying them drinks from the bar and Tony chatting up pretty women. Stephen asked him about it every time; Tony just denied it saying that he was trying to uphold his image now that Stephen wasn’t associated with him anymore.

Stephen knew Tony had never cheated on him. Eventually, he just got… _tired_.

Tired of travelling to Malibu just to see Tony.

Tired of going to Stark Tower to see more of Pepper than he did of Tony.

Christine would spend hours of their shifts together badgering him about what was going on in his head, “your work is suffering,” she would say, her hand resting on his arm as he pretended to study another case, “what’s got you so distracted?”

He tried to tell her. Well, he considered telling her briefly once.

She just wouldn’t understand what it was like to have so much going on in your head at one time, and the one thing that could make it stop also becoming part of the original problem.

How could she ever understand that?

She understood it plenty, apparently. After the Ancient One passed away, Stephen would meet up with her for coffee every week in a little coffee shop near the hospital Christine continued to work at. The two of them became rather good friends, once Stephen finally took responsibility for the way he’d treated her all the years they’d known each other.

It was the twentieth (not that Stephen had been counting or anything) accusation against Tony that finally made Stephen leave.

This time it was different; the person telling the media that they’d slept with Tony was a man. And he knew all about the tattoo that Tony had on the side of his foot. A rocket that he’d gotten, just as the man said, on a drunk whim when he was seventeen, Rhodey tutting the entire time.

When Stephen had seen it and asked Tony about it, his boyfriend told him that the only people that knew about that tattoo were Rhodey (“ _he was there when I got it. He didn’t talk to me for a week_ ,”) and Pepper (“ _Pepper has seen my penis more times than you have, so of course she knows about a tattoo on my foot_ ,”).

So how did _this_ man know about it then?

Stephen drove all the way to Stark Tower, now having the access to park his car in the basement of the building, knowing full well that his boyfriend would be in a meeting with Stane and his other associates. He was _more than willing_ to wait for Tony to get back to his penthouse.

Stephen, whenever he had met Stane, always got a funny feeling about the man. Tony said that he was the only person really there for him after the death of his parents and then Jarvis’ which followed soon after, but Stephen couldn’t help but feel that he was up to something.

He stormed through the reception, nodding to the new receptionist the company had hired just after their first argument – Stephen liked her a lot more than the one who he had met the first time he’d entered the tower – and made his way straight into the elevators.

“Jarvis,” he said to the ceiling, his fingers drumming angrily against the side of his left leg, “penthouse, please,” he was slightly sad that this would be the last time he would be allowed into the penthouse, but he knew that this was something that he had to do to get his career back on track.

And his happiness.

Mainly his career though.

Or so he’d tell the press when they asked him about it a month later after he was seen necking a twenty-five-year-old model. Unfortunately for Stephen, Tony had also been at the party and was seen dancing with his ex-boyfriend, Rhodey, so there was a lot of attention focused on the two of them.

When the elevator doors opened, Stephen sighed deeply, “into battle,”  


* * *

Tony took another hour to arrive.

Stephen, sat up straight on one of the chairs in Tony’s living room, one leg folded over the other and hands held tightly across his knee, heard the elevator open, the sound of fingers typing furiously on a phone sounding behind him.

“Oh, hello,” he heard Tony say, not having expected the neurosurgeon to be sitting there, “what are you doing here, sweet cheeks?” he asked, walking towards the chair Stephen was sat on to look at his face.

Stephen hated himself for the look Tony gave him in that moment, the smile he always wore when he saw him quickly falling off his face at the sight of tears in Stephen’s eyes. He didn’t want to get too emotional about this, he didn’t want Tony to fight for him anymore.

“We need to talk,” Stephen started, one of his hands gesturing at the sofa opposite where he sat, “I have a couple of things I’d like to say,” he said once Tony had sat down on the sofa, “and I’d like it if you listened to everything before you say what you need to say,” his eyes shimmered with repressed tears, he implored Tony to listen to him.

Tony nodded solemnly, his adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he swallowed.

“I didn’t ever foresee myself having to tell you something like this,” he said quietly, almost to himself, “I’d always pictured you being the one to tell me when you thought things were at its end,” he noticed Tony’s breath hitching, his hands tightening where they were fisted in his suit trousers, “I don’t know whether you’ve noticed but things haven’t been the same for us as they were when I told you that I was in love with you,” he sighed, “not even since you told me you were in love with me,”

“That’s why I have to tell you this now,” his eyes moved from where they were directed onto the floor to look Tony in the eye, all the tears dried up as he said, “I no longer find myself in love with you,” _I am, Tony, I really am_ , “things have changed in both of our lives,” _I’m not who I was because of you,_ “I don’t trust our relationship and what it means to you,” _please tell me I’m being ridiculous and that you’d never cheat on me_ , “so I think we should end things before they get too messy,” _I want you to kiss me and tell me everything is okay, but I have to let you go_ , “that’s all I have to say.”

Tony looked heartbroken for a few seconds, the look of shock on his face causing Stephen’s chest to tighten, only for a cold and hard expression to form on his face. Stephen’s heart shattered further.

“You caught on then,” Tony said, hip lip raising until he was smirking at the neurosurgeon, “I wondered how much longer it would take you,”

Stephen swallowed, his face paling considerably, “what do you mean?” he asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

Tony crossed his arms across his chest, laughing softly, “you didn’t actually think that I was in love with you, did you?” his laugh became a cackle, sarcastic and mean, “it was a publicity stunt,” he sneered, “something to help sales of my lesser known medical equipment,”

“B-but –”

“But what?” Tony laughed again, moving to stand so close to Stephen that he could feel the billionaire’s breath ghosting his face, “I must admit that it was difficult to pretend for so long, particularly once people stopped paying attention to us, but it all worked out for the best,” he smiled, a big toothy smile that Stephen had never seen him direct towards anyone before, only towards a project he was proud of, “profits have increased by twenty percent since I’ve been with you,”

Stephen felt like his heart was about to give out, the cruelty in Tony’s tone like small knives slowly entering his body, pushing deeper and deeper the more he spoke. Maybe the media had been right in the way they’d judged the only child of Howard Stark.

Playboy. Philanthropist. _Arsehole_.

Stephen stood, staring at the floor beneath Tony’s feet, heart hammering in his ears, “I never loved you,” Tony snarked, bitterness entwined in every word he spoke, “I’m not sure anyone ever will,”

There it was. The final blow.

Something in Stephen snapped at that moment, his heart cracked forever, and never fixable. Tony was right. Who would want to be with him now?

“Touché,” he muttered, plastering a smile on his face. He truly hoped deep down that Tony saw the look on his face and believed him, believed the lack of emotion on his face.

“Thanks for opening your legs,” Stephen snarked, teeth glistening in the bright light of the penthouse, “I had a laugh,”

He left. He didn’t look back.

He couldn’t look back.  


* * *

Tony and Stephen, despite still yearning for each other and regretting every word that had left their mouths, didn’t speak to one another until Stephen’s portal opened in 2018, Bruce Banner wrapping himself tightly around Tony’s waist.

Stephen became the best in the business, charging as much money as he wanted to save people’s lives, and spending it on booze and fancy cars as soon as it was in his bank account. Why would he need money in the future anyway?

He drank every night, his hands shaking when he awoke the next morning, and he slept with any man he could pick up in a gay club. The sex was good, but it wasn’t the same as it had been when he was with Tony. In fact, he wasn’t sure it would ever be the same again, after all… who wanted to be in a relationship with him? No one, just as Tony had pointed out.

Stark Industries only became bigger and more popular with the armed forces, Tony’s weapons being sold in bigger batches for higher prices. Peace costs a lot of money, right? At least that’s what Obadiah told him.

He drank more, he slept around more, not enjoying it. Not really. He’d never liked his playboy image, and here it was growing by the tenfold just because he couldn’t get over the man who broke his heart.

Then Tony went missing in Afghanistan.

Stephen watched the news every day, hoping for some form of news about where Tony was and if he was coming home.

It took three long months.

He wondered how long it felt to Tony.

Stephen only knew about Tony coming home when he received a phone call from Pepper, out of the blue.

“Doctor Strange?” the familiar voice asked, uncertainty thick in every word.

“Pepper Potts,” he said, laughing softly into the phone, “now what would a woman like you be calling a man like me for?”

“Tony needs your help,”

“I- what?” Stephen stuttered, moving so that Christine couldn’t see him, “I thought he was–“

“Rhodey found him, all alone in the middle of the Afghan desert,”

“As good as that news is, I’m not too sure what that’s got to do with me,” he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes, completely thankful that Pepper couldn’t see him. His fight wasn’t with Pepper, he tried to remember that.

“Rhodey says that Tony has… Tony is injured and he needs the best surgeon we can get to help keep him alive. He tells me that he’s never seen anything like it before. We need you, Stephen,” she sighed softly into the phone, the sound of rustling near her catching Stephen’s attention, “Tony needs _you_ ,”

Stephen frowned, it had been five years since he had lain eyes upon Tony, why would he suddenly want him now? He swallowed pursing his lips.

“As frightfully interesting as that sounds, Miss Potts, I’m afraid that I have to decline,”

“What?”

“Too much on, you know how it is,”

“No, I don’t, Strange,” she was silent for a few moments, Stephen briefly thinking that she’d hung up the phone, “I thought you were different, you know. Tony really did love you,”

“That’s not what he told me,” he said, hanging up the phone.

Stephen watched the press quizzing Tony about where he’d been, his announcement that he’d no longer be making and selling weapons anymore, and the look on Stane’s face after it all.

He drank, he had sex, he saw the news of the arc reactor destroying part of Stark Industries’ building, watching as Tony briefly tried to claim that it was the fault of a bodyguard, before announcing to the World that he was, in fact Iron Man. He watched as he began a relationship with Pepper Potts. He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him. _I never loved you._ _I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he had sex, he watched as Tony and the Avengers saved the World. Tony’s childhood hero back from the dead, by his side, as he drove a missile into the beyond. He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he had sex, he saw that Tony finally had an operation to get rid of the arc reactor in his chest. Shrapnel, the news said. He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he had sex, he crashed his car. Pain. So much pain. Christine said there was nothing that they could do. _Pain_. He didn’t have any money, he couldn’t afford to go abroad and get treatment. He _needed_ his hands, they were all he had. He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he didn’t have sex, he kneeled in the centre of Stark Tower’s reception, pleading for the receptionist to tell Tony that he was here, that he needed to see him right away. He _needed_ his hands. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he didn’t have sex, he sobbed at Pepper’s voice, telling him that Tony didn’t want to see him, didn’t want to help him. _An eye for an eye_ she claimed Tony had said. Later on, he would say that he deserved to be denied by Tony. It had been 8 years since Tony had been kidnapped, why would he help Stephen now? _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He drank, he didn’t have sex, he sold everything he owned bar a watch that Christine had given him, a trinket from life before hell. He went to find the place that could cure him. He was mugged, beaten and weakened from how tired he was. He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He stopped drinking, he didn’t have sex, he found somewhere to call home. He studied, just as the Ancient One told him to. He became a sorcerer, in his own right. He followed Mordo’s instructions. He fought to defend the sanctum against Kaecilius, the Cloak of Levitation becoming a source of comfort in a world of pain. He didn’t win. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He didn’t drink, he didn’t have sex, he looped time, his fight against Dormammu long and painful, but he saved the World from evil, that was all that mattered in the end. He won. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

He didn’t drink, he didn’t have sex, he became friends with Wong, saw him as his equal when he never would have been capable of doing so before. He teased him about his love for Beyonce and laughed when he saw him dancing along to the music video. Mordo was gone. _I never loved you. I’m not sure anyone ever will_.

Stephen tried to move on, without Tony Stark.

He tried not to think about him. He didn’t want to think about him.

His hands never recovered, and neither did his heart.

The roof to the sanctum was caved in, Doctor Banner slowly becoming himself again and shouting for someone to find Tony, where is Tony?

He didn’t fancy seeing Iron Man again. Banner said it would mean the end of half the universe if Thanos got what he wanted.

They needed Tony.

Standing in front of his ex-boyfriend, a whimpering Bruce Banner clinging to the billionaire’s waist, and Pepper (just as beautiful as he remembered her being), Stephen felt a strange lurch in his heart, one he hadn’t felt in almost two years.

“I'm Doctor Stephen Strange,” he said, looking his ex-boyfriend in the eye, “I think you better come with me,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment below.
> 
> The next chapter is an epilogue of sorts. 
> 
> See you next week x


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Do they build bridges or start a war?

_Sitting on Titan, Stephen Strange realised that there was only one way, out of over 14 million options, for the Avengers to defeat Thanos, and that involved his own life being taken away from him._

_Did he have regrets? More than a few._

Of course he had regrets.

He wished that he’d given Christine all the love a woman like her deserved, instead of using her for egotistical gains. He wished that he’d gone to look for Mordo, told him how he really felt about him.

And then there was Tony.

He watched as the man of iron conversed with the young boy Peter, the son they could have had together, if everything had worked out. He couldn’t help but think of the future they could have built together.

But they didn’t have one. Not now.

Tony’s eyes met his from a distance away, catching Stephen staring at Peter as though mourning him. What he couldn’t work out was why. Stephen tried to smile at him, his lips forming more of a grimace than anything else, before putting his head in his hands.

He just wanted to tune everyone and everything out.

“Alright, sweet cheeks?”

Stephen’s head jerked up to look at a smirking Tony, “it’s been a long time since you called me that,” he said solemnly, “I almost missed it,”

Tony laughed sitting himself down next to his old flame, ten times the man he remembered him being, “I almost missed you,” he said jokingly, “it’s been a long time since we last saw each other,”

“Usually when someone tells you that you were just a publicity stunt, you take it as a hint that they never want to see you again,” Stephen whispered, upset from everything that he had remembered. It had been a long thirteen years since they’d seen one another, with everything in between making it only more impossible to do so.

Even if they did still love each other.

“I thought you could read me better than that, Stephen,” Tony said, rubbing his hands together, “I thought that in the two years we’d been together that you would be the one person who would know when I was lying straight to your face. Not Pepper. Not Rhodey. _You_ ,” he turned to study Stephen’s face, blood running down his cheekbone. He had always had some of the most impressive cheekbones Tony had ever seen, he’d missed them too.

“It was _you_ who wanted to break up with _me_ , Strange, not the other way around,”

Stephen swallowed, taking a deep breath, “people have always considered me narcissistic, and maybe I was after you and I broke up because, as you said, no one could ever love me, so why shouldn’t I love myself to make up for it?

“When I found out about that stupid kid telling everyone about your tattoo, about the tattoo that no one knew about, I just lost it,” he said, tears forming in his eyes, “I loved you, more than anything, but I couldn’t stand the thought of you being with anyone else,” he paused for a moment, “when I looked at you, all I could see was the face of that boy moaning underneath you. I couldn’t stay,”

“You could have given me a chance to explain--,”

“I gave you nineteen chances to explain before he came forward, and none of them had knowledge of you like he did,” Stephen said, sounding as though he was on the verge of a strop, “my self-esteem couldn’t handle it,”

“You genuinely thought I had cheated on you. Me?” Tony asked exacerbated.

Stephen’s heart beat loudly in his ears, “I-I didn’t know what to think,” he turned to meet Tony’s eyes, “you’re Tony Stark; the one enigma that I couldn’t figure out,” he laughed slightly to himself, “I never stopped loving you, you know. Even when I refused to help you when you got back from Afghanistan. Even when you refused to help me,”

“You never did tell me why you wouldn’t help me,” Tony said sadly, “Pepper never told me that she asked you to help but the look on her face when she asked about the arc reactor told me all I needed to know,”

Stephen sniffed, rubbing at his eyes, “you broke my heart,”

Tony sighed deeply, “just as you were going to break mine, Strange,”

“I am sorry, Stark,” he said, “more than you could ever know,”

“Yeah, me too, sunshine,”

Stephen chuckled to himself, shaking his head and looking over towards Peter again, “that’s a new one,”

“Thought it up on the spot,” Tony joked, his smile finally reaching his eyes. It dropped off his face suddenly, the man clearly thinking about something, “I built you new hands, you know,”

Stephen’s head snapped towards him, “ _what_?”

Tony ringed his hands together, trying to avoid Stephen’s eyes for as long as possible, “Pepper told me that she’d told you to fuck off--,”

“I wish she’d said that instead of--,”

“—without even asking me what I wanted to do first,” he turned to look at Stephen again, taking one of the sorcerer’s hands into his own and feeling how badly they continued to shake to this day, “I made you something that would stop your hands from shaking. They are almost like an exoskeleton in appearance, following the lines of your fingers and allowing for full movement and gradually help your hands fix themselves. I’m quite proud of them, really,” he smiled to himself slightly, thumb stroking across one of the scars on Stephen’s hands, “I have always loved your hands,”

“Tony--,”

“You could have gone back to work,”

Stephen felt a tear fall down his face and onto the hand Tony held, “but then I wouldn’t be the man I am now. I would have gone back to my old ways, perhaps worse than I had been. Angry at the world where nobody is listening,”

“Is a car crash that destroyed your life not humbling enough for you?” Tony laughed slightly, though not at Stephen’s expense, “I only made them so I could get back to my nanotech. The thought of you spilling hot coffee over yourself was too distracting,” he said, Stephen not believing him for a moment.

“If we make it out of this alive,” he said slowly, considering everything he had seen, “you’ll have to show them to me,” he giggled, studying Tony’s face closely.

Tony met his eye, “maybe I will,”

Stephen could see all the emotion brewing in Tony’s eyes, he knew about Pepper, and that they were getting married, and as much as he wanted to be with Tony, he couldn’t destroy what they had together. He cleared his throat, looking towards Peter with his eyebrows raised, “you’re very good with him,” he stated.

Tony looked to see what Stephen was staring at, “true genius, that one. Heart of gold too,” he smiled, “he’s like the son I never had,” his grip tightened on Stephen’s hand, “the best part is that I get to give him back to his Aunt May at the end of the day,” he joked, a smile filling his face completely.

“I can only imagine,”

“Do you-. Never mind,”

Stephen watched as the young boy talked animatedly to Mantis, throwing his arms around his head in an enthusiastic manner. He wondered what he was telling her about. Probably some pop culture reference that Mantis didn’t understand fully, he thought with a smile, “do I what?”

Tony sighed, “do you ever wonder what it would be like if we’d had children? If nothing had happened between us, I think that we could have been happy,”

Stephen’s heart stopped for a moment, his voice caught in his throat, “I-I--,”

“I _know_ we were happy, before that day,”

“You should be thinking about your future with Pepper now, Stark,” Stephen said, trying to hold back tears again, “Wong told me about your engagement. Congratulations,” he smiled sincerely.

“Thank you,” Tony said honestly, “it was all kind of a mistake at first,”

“What do you mean?” Stephen asked harshly, wanting to protect Pepper’s honour with everything he had. She didn’t deserve to be messed around like that.

“I held the press conference because I wanted to announce Peter as an avenger,” he smiled again, studying the boy from afar, “strange how things turn out for the better. I think Pepper is pregnant,”

“I’m glad you’re happy, Stark,” Stephen said quietly, meaning every word he spoke. All he ever wanted was for Tony to be happy, it was a shame it couldn’t be in Stephen’s arms instead of Pepper’s.

Tony sniffed, turning to look at Stephen, “what about you? Found anyone to give your heart to?”

Stephen thought for a moment, “there was this guy, for a while. I thought that we’d be able to make it work with one another,” his eyes strayed, zoning out into the distance, “he’s gone now though,”

“Where did he go?”

“I’m not sure. I thought that I owed it to him not to spy on his life, especially if I’m not in it,” he said hoarsely, thinking about the smile that Mordo always gave him, “I think I always thought of our relationship as something more than he did,” he laughed slightly to himself, trying to cover up the true pain he felt.

Then he met Tony’s eye, “I’ve been meaning to ask Wong out for a coffee, but I’ve never found the right time. Sometimes he doesn’t read situations right. I could tell him I love him, and he’d just laugh and walk away,” he said fondly, “wouldn’t change him though,”

Tony laughed, “he doesn’t seem like your type, Strange,”

“What? Short, brunette and annoying?” Stephen smiled broadly at Tony, the two of them laughing together and pulling the attention of the others on Titan towards them, “Wong is a great friend, perhaps something more than that,” he watched as Peter walked slowly towards them, “I fear we’ve been rumbled, Stark,”

Tony too looked at Peter, the small falling from his face slightly, “I see we have,”

“We need to follow Quill’s plan, Tony, it’s the only way,”

“Only way?” Tony chuckled, walking towards Peter, “I’ll hold you to that,”

Tony would never be able to, as Stephen turned to dust before his eyes, Peter following not long after, dying in his arms.

Tony was alone.

“I love you, Stephen,” he whispered into his clenched hands, holding dust that used to be Peter close to him. He couldn’t let go.

**_The End._ **

****

****

****

**_Or is it…?_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for joining me on this writing journey. This is the first multi chapter fic I have ever finished so I'm quite proud of myself. 
> 
> I might write a sequel when A4 is released, so if you'd like me to do that, let me know.


End file.
